


Turn Me to Stone

by natliswifthoe



Category: Karlie Kloss - Fandom, Kaylor - Fandom, Taylor Swift (Musician)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Fluff, Sex Slaves AU, TW for murder and torture, potential smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-16
Updated: 2017-11-06
Packaged: 2018-07-15 10:15:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 22,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7218466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natliswifthoe/pseuds/natliswifthoe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sex slaves AU no one asked for.</p><p>She knows she's in trouble - she's been in trouble for god knows how many times but this one may be the worst one yet.</p><p>She should've known trouble is either brought by an evil queen or green eyes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first work for the Kaylor fandom and I suck at writing fluff but I have so many ideas and AUs that I decided to finally jot this one down.
> 
> This is not betaed so apologies for typos or grammar errors.

**Prologue**

 

They are here.

Their footsteps echo around the quiet hall and mother clutches me close to her as we hear the tell-tale click of an opening door.

“Don’t be scared,” mother whispers in my ear but even with her soothing voice, I cannot stop the whimper that comes out of my mouth when I see their shadows loom over us like branches swaying to the beat of a storm.

I can see their lips twitch into something similar to a smile. But smiles aren’t evil looking or conspiring. They should be friendly and welcoming, a blanket warming you up after a cold day. Their ‘smile’ makes me want to run headfirst into a blizzard storm.

“We want the child,” one of the men says and mother’s hold on me tightens.

“Take whatever you need,” she says quietly but with venom in her voice. I look up and see her eyes are glistening but unyielding. She won’t let them hurt me. “But not my daughter. She’s only eight.”

Behind them, I see a dazzling set of diamonds carefully arranged on a crown sitting on top of a mop of blond hair and I hide my face on mother’s side. She’s here, too. Why?

I can hear one of the men sigh in exasperation and annoyance and he pulls out a whip from somewhere in his utility sack and mother all but shoves me behind her, using her body to shield me from the assault that the man will surely deliver.

“Please. She’s the only one I have left. You already took my husband and three daughters, please spare her. Please.” I feel my eyes burn and a sob escapes. They will take me away even with mother’s begging. They listen to no one but The Queen.

“Take the child already,” I hear a melodic voice say somewhere down the hall and I wonder idly how the devil has the voice of an angel. “I have spent enough time here in this filthy place to last a lifetime. Get her and let’s go.”

With the order, the men move forward and grab me by the arms despite mother’s attempt to shove them away from me. I cry and reach for her as one of the men cages me in his arms to take me away from her while the other pushes her down on the floor. She tries to get up and run past him but two more men barges in the room and holds her back.

“Karlie! Please! Your Highness, please! I’ll do anything just don’t take my daughter from me. Please!” Mother cries and I punch the man holding me up by the waist but to no avail.

He simply sneers down at me and bats my tiny hands away.

“Your Highness, please! I’m begging you! She’s all I have.” Her tears are running down her cheeks and I try to wrestle out of the man’s grip. “Let me go! Mother!”

She looks at me and I feel something break inside of me at the pain I see on her face. “My Queen, I’m begging you! I will do anything!” She struggles out of the men’s grip but she’s clearly out powered and outnumbered. More tears escape and I cry uncontrollably. “Mother!”

I hear rather than see The Queen approach and she appraises me for a moment before nodding and turning her attention to my mother who has now stopped struggling.

“Anything?” The Queen asks, tilting her head to the side and hope blooms in my chest. There’s still a chance.

Mother nods quickly. “Yes, Your Majesty. Anything.”

“And what else do you have that I don’t?” Mother stays silent at the question and fear creeps back up in the pit of my stomach. “Answer me, peasant. Do you have anything else to offer me that I don’t already have?”

Mother looks down and my stomach sinks. The Queen is right. We don’t have anything else to offer her. Father and my three sisters are already serving her and we don’t have enough money or an antique collection that The Queen may like. Mother has nothing else to offer.

“Myself.”

My head shoots up at the word and I see determination in Mother’s eyes. She will never give me up.

The Queen watches her for a moment or two before she chuckles. “And what would I get from a forty year old something like you? You’re filthy, old, and disposable. I don’t have a use for you. Even as a servant, you’re useless.”

Mother opens her mouth to speak but The Queen waves her hand, signalling the end of discussion and stomping on the hope that bloomed earlier in my chest. “This is a waste of time. Dispose her.”

The men holding her give a curt nod and The Queen snaps her fingers to the man holding me. “Let’s go.”

I slam my fists down on his chest to stop him but he keeps walking and I hear mother scream, “Karlie!” as the men holding her back produce whips and knives from their sacks. She reaches her arm out to me and I extend mine to her. My name falls upon her lips before the men shove her down and all I can see and hear is their hands raising with whips and mother’s agonized scream as the leather kisses her skin. I scream ‘mother’ over and over again even as the door begins to close and starts to obscure my view of her. The last thing I see is her bloodied and tear stained face from in between the men’s feet and the pain in her eyes etches itself in my mind as the door falls shut.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter One**

 

She can’t feel her arms and legs as they drag her down the dimly lit hallway. She hears nothing but her laboured breathing and their heavy boots making contact with the polished floors. She’s exhausted and parched. The fact that she screamed at the guards for God knows how long is enough to remind her that she needs water if she’s going to survive this hell on earth experience.

_Hell on earth, how appropriate_. The temperature in the castle must be over a hundred. Sweat is running down her back and she itches to pull her flimsy dress away from her body, modesty be damned. As if she has any dignity left after what happened in _that_ room. She shudders involuntarily. The images and sounds of whips, of leather cracking on skin make her want to retch her guts out. She did just that earlier and more hits and insults followed.

_“You filthy little thing. How dare you.”_

Bile rises in her throat. The Princess showed her some compassion, knowing she was taken from home three hours prior but The Queen…A sob escapes her as she remembers what The Queen has done after she poured all the contents of her breakfast at her feet.

_She’s smiling but there is a dangerous look in her eyes. It’s the same grin the wolf gave to Red Riding Hood when he saw her alone in the woods. Her face says something nice but her eyes are anything but._

_She grasps her chin with her glove covered fingers and makes her look into her eyes. “Look at you. Disgusted by what you just witnessed?” The Queen posed it as a question but she doesn’t have it in her to answer. She’s beyond disgusted. Disgust is such a mild word._

_The grip tightens and she winces. “Answer me.”_

_“Y-yes.” She stutters and tries to look away but her tantalizingly brown eyes bores into her blue orbs and a whimper escapes her lips without her permission._

_“Well, well, well.” She lets her go and she staggers a few steps back, putting as much distance as she possibly can. “Brace yourself, darling. **You** are about to experience something **worse**.”_

Tears run down her cheeks and she wants to wipe them away but she can’t. Even without the guards gripping and dragging her by her arms, she’s not sure if she can still make her body coordinate. _Death would be better right now._ Dying means she can no longer feel pain. It means freedom. She won’t be humiliated and she can float around wherever the so-called paradise is. They should have just killed her, like what they did to the others, but The Princess was there to monitor the execution and when she set eyes on her, she immediately ordered to have her spared and in the carriage and brought to the castle for her and The Queen.

_“A new toy. Mother will be pleased.”_

More tears escape and as she hears the unmistakable sound of an opening door, she braces herself to witness more women getting tortured for the aristocrats’ pleasure.

She lifts her head and immediately shuts her eyes to shield herself from the blinding light in the room. She feels herself get thrown down the floor and hears shuffling sounds as hands grasp her arms and she flinches at the contact.

“You’re safe here.” It was spoken right at her ear with a soft voice and she wills herself to believe the words but she can’t bring her mind to it. After what she’s gone through today, she just can’t.

“Clean her up,” one of the guards commands and she curls her arms around herself and keeps her eyes closed. Maybe if she willed all of them to disappear, she will eventually wake up from this horrendous nightmare. “The Princess wants her trained for next week. The Queen is pissed at her attitude so teach her well. She may not come back whole the next time she disrespects her.” Probably one of the people in the room gives an affirmative nod because the next thing she hears is a closing door and women’s voices enveloping her.

They start whispering to each other and she lets out a sob as one of them pulls her into their arms. She’s too tired to fight them off. She just wants to sleep but is too scared after everything.

“Go get the bandages.”

“What do you think happened?”

“The lukewarm water, Cara, and the needles and threads, now.”

“She’s been whipped a lot, it seems.”

With all the voices, only one stands out to her. “I won’t let them get to you again.” She cracks her eyes open and sees a glimpse of green eyes gazing down at her with so much emotion that makes her want to burst into tears or laughter. Maybe both.

She opens her mouth to speak but the lady holding her in her arms shushes her. “Go to sleep. You’ll feel better once you wake up.”

She doesn’t want to listen to her, already fed up with people ordering her around today but she can’t stop herself from obeying as she lets exhaustion embrace her and lull her to sleep.

 

* * *

 

 

The smell of brewing coffee and honey butter toast reach her senses and she struggles to open her eyes. She is beyond starved and she would thank the gods below and above the earth if she gets to have a taste of the pleasant smelling food.

Her eyes feel stuck and she can’t feel the other parts of her body. She can now hear distinct voices having hushed conversations and she wonders where she could possibly be. Austin and Abigail never keep their voices down even if she’s sleeping after a long day at work. They also don’t know how to cook much more brew coffee. That’s her job at home. _Austin, Abigail. Home_. Her home is destroyed. After the rally they pulled off the other day to stop The Queen from getting more taxes from the people, her soldiers came and dragged the organizers of the rally and their families to the Plaza to execute them and show the people who truly holds the power.

She shudders, the memories of yesterday coming back to her in a wave of anguish and broken promises and she sits up, eyes wide, bleary from tears and scanning the room. The hushed voices stop altogether and sets of eyes watch her carefully.

“Don’t look at her like that. She’s not an animal ready to pounce on you,” someone says from behind her and she cranes her neck but her body doesn’t cooperate and she slumps back down on the bed. She’s on a bed with mattress, dressed in a carnation colored chiffon dress with sleeves long enough to hide her upper arms and almost reaches her knees. She wonders who changed her out of the filthy and bloodied clothes she was wearing when she got here earlier.

A blond girl wearing a similar dress like hers comes to her and offers her a glass of water. She looks at it warily before slowly sitting up and reaching her hand out for the glass but before she can take hold of it, the same voice speaks up. “She can’t even crane her neck to see me. Help her drink the water, Cara.”

_She must be the head maid here or something_ , she thinks as she gulps down the water, the liquid soothing her scratched and sore throat. She finishes it in four gulps.

“More?” the girl who looks five years her junior asks with a smile and she gives a small nod of her head. She goes to what seems like an adjoining room and comes back with a pitcher of water in hand and a plate of bread on the other. The smell of the toast makes her stomach rumble loudly and she sends a silent thanks to the women who said nothing at the obvious sign of her hunger.

The girl, who she presumes must be Cara, helped her put the bread in her mouth as the other women in the room go back to their conversations earlier and promptly ignoring her altogether, which she’s grateful for. After the incident, she doesn’t want any more prying eyes aimed at her direction. She keeps her emotion in check as she accepts the glass of water from Cara. She’s cried enough and she doesn’t trust herself to break down in front of these strangers. They seem friendly and respectful enough to not ask her questions but she can’t bring herself to talk to or even come in contact with anyone. The torture she went through today has already clawed its way in her mind and in the very depths of her self-being and she doubts it’s going away any time soon.

She feels devoid of any emotion, having witnessed the mass execution- _murder_ , she reminds herself- of her family and friends with her being able to do nothing but scream and cry for help.

_They stand there, watching with hands on their mouths and eyes half-closed because of all the shed blood that they’re seeing. They brought this upon themselves, many of them say, malice clear in their voices. But they know nothing. They know nothing of the struggle and sacrifices they went through to stop The Queen from milking more money out of them without using it for the benefit of the townspeople she should be leading._

_She keeps on yelling, asking for someone, anyone to help her, help her family. The guards are holding her back from running to the executors and stopping them from inflicting pain and death to her loved ones and she knows there is no hope for any of them. She hears their agonised screams and their cries echo in her ears even after she’s been thrown into the carriage to go back to the castle. Their faces etched themselves in her mind; the gaping wound on Austin’s forehead, the blood running down the side of Abigail’s face, her father getting kicked and punched in the face and all over his body, the lacerations on Brit’s back from all the whipping they gave, the lack of life in her mother’s eyes as her head rolls away from her neck and she wishes she can be with them, share their agony and despair. That would have been better. She’d rather suffer with her siblings and friends and die with them, knowing they died for a good reason instead of being kept alive but not getting treated as a human being but a mere object of pleasure._

_She knows what’s going to happen when she reaches the castle and she whimpers until The Queen’s gaze falls upon her and she knows, believes even, that death is the easiest and only way out of this fucked up reality._

She doesn’t notice the tears running down her face until Cara wraps her arms around her, cautious of what her reaction might be. She’s grateful that she’s pulled her into a hug because when she starts crying, the tears don’t stop until all she can do is hiccup. She’s drained. Empty, even. After witnessing the execution at the square and the torture done to the sex slaves of The Queen, she doesn’t know what to feel anymore. Disgust, hatred, and guilt seem too mild to describe the emotions rioting inside her.

“It’s going to be okay,” Cara soothes in her ear. She wants to believe her but the day has proven to her that even the kindest people get killed because they don’t hold the power to yield the whips and swords and are too kind for their own good to save themselves.

She shakes her head and pulls away. Cara offers her a smile and the corner of her lips twitch into something she hopes resembles a smile.

“I’m Cara.” She says with the smile still on her face and she wonders how the girl can keep a happy façade despite everything she’s seen and heard in this castle.

She opens her mouth to speak and a choked, “Taylor” comes out of her. She clears her throat and tries again. “I’m Taylor.” There, that sounded more like herself although her throat still feels raw from all the screaming and crying she’s done.

A chorus of ‘Hello, Taylor’s and ‘Welcome, Taylor’s emanate from the women gathered around the room and she sees unfamiliar but friendly, smiling faces all looking at her. She suddenly feels shy and exposed. Here she was crying to a girl younger than her in front of these people she doesn’t even know the names of.

“Hi, Taylor.” She hears someone say from behind her and she angles herself to look at the speaker. She’s met with familiar green eyes and a careful smile. A girl, probably two to four years older than her, sits in front of her, wearing a pale blue satin dress. _She’s wearing satin?_

“Uhm, hi.” _She must be the Head Lady or something_.

She probably sees where Taylor’s stare was directed because she then says, “It was The Princess’ order that I only wear satin.” Pink colors her cheeks and she wonders if she’s embarrassed that The Princess favours her among the others.

“It’s because you’re her favourite,” Cara says behind her and Satin Girl shoots her a glare that can probably roast her if she has heat vision. She must have been teased about it before because some women also chuckle at Cara’s remark.

“Anyway,” she drawls out, gaining Taylor’s attention. “I’m Karlie.” She holds out her hand and Taylor takes it. They briefly shake hands and Karlie smiles wider at her. They seem all too happy despite their situation and she wonders if they’re high on drugs or on some delusion that they’re being treated properly and as human beings.

“Do you want some more food?” Karlie asks. “Cara has finally learned to cook today, although it’s just some porridge. I apologize in advance if it tastes like burnt wood.”

“Hey!” Cara protests. “Porridge is my specialty.” She huffs in frustration and Taylor has to smile. She reminds her of how Abigail would defend her cooking despite it tasting really awful. The memories of her, Austin, and Abigail in their kitchen feel like pouring alcohol to still gaping wounds. The thought of her siblings brings back fresh tears and she fights to keep her emotions in check.

Fortunately, Karlie’s retort is enough to bring her back to the present. “Porridge is the _only dish_ you know how to cook, Cara.”

Cara tackles Karlie then, barely missing Taylor by an inch, and the women in the room burst out laughing. Taylor realizes then that Cara is the source of their happiness. Their situation is glum but somehow, she keeps them distracted from all the bullshit that happens in their lives in the castle. She must be the youngest of them all and is the life of this place.

Karlie throws Cara off her and laughs at the offended look on the younger girl’s face. “It’s true!”

Cara crosses her arms over her chest and says, “It’s not like you’re the best cook here.”

“At least I know how to cook _five_ dishes.”

“Considering you’re twenty-three, I’m surprised you only know _five_.”

Karlie growls at her and Taylor smiles at their playful banter. This must be their usual routine. And despite everything that’s happened today, she can’t help but feel a bit better. Maybe this is not all bad with these people surrounding her.

“How old are _you_ , Taylor?” Cara asks her suddenly and she blushes as she feels all eyes on her.

“I-I’m twenty,” she stutters and mentally admonishes herself. At her age, she still doesn’t know how to interact with fresh faces and she should have learned by now. Her father always had guests at home and she would always be told to talk and listen to them as they discussed the town issues and how they should address them. Years later and she still doesn’t know how to properly interact with strangers.

“I’m fifteen. And the ages here range from twenty to twenty-six.”

“You’re the youngest.” _Nice_ , she thought. _State the obvious_.

Cara nods. “I was taken to serve the household when I was twelve. Promoted when I turned fourteen.” She puts air quotes on promoted and Taylor raises an eyebrow. “The Queen wanted younger girls to please her. I’m really gorgeous so it was no brainer, really.”

Karlie smacks the back of her head and Cara yelps. “What the-”

“So full of yourself, ain’t we, hm?” She ruffles Cara’s blond hair and the younger girl smacks her hand away, glaring at a smirking Karlie.

“That’s your second strike today, Kar. _Second_. I’m warning you.”

Karlie looks lovingly at Cara and Taylor is struck by the thought that they may be sisters. She voices out the question and the two look at each other before they burst out laughing.

“I’m sorry,” Karlie says immediately after registering the look of hurt on Taylor’s face. “The question was funny, not you.” She wipes tears from her eyes, still chuckling. “But to answer your question, no, we’re not sisters. The universe doesn’t hate me _that_ much.”

Taylor waves her hand between the two of them. “But you look like you are.”

“Ew, no,” Cara comments. “I mean, aside from the obvious, we’re so different. First of which is that I’m pretty and she’s not. I’m-”

“I’m tall and she’s tiny,” Karlie interrupts and Cara glares at her.

The way they argue and tease each other remind her painfully of Abigail and herself. Austin would just watch as they bicker over the dish that they’d prepare for dinner and how she would always end up winning because despite Abigail being cute when favoured, she can’t let her younger sister burn down their house. The tears come unbidden again and she curses herself for being so damn weak. If every time her memories triggered tears, she sure won’t get through a day without shedding some.

“Earth to Taylor?”

She lifts her head up at the mention of her name and sees Karlie and Cara regarding her with small smiles. These girls helped her today in more ways than one even without knowing who she really is and she can’t even imagine what would’ve happened to her if it weren’t for their sympathy and kindness. Having been through what she’s been through, their small actions meant a whole lot to her and she blurts out a “Thank you” before she can think about it and she feels heat rise to her cheeks.

“We help our sisters, new or old,” Cara states, pride in her voice.

Karlie nods and grins at Taylor and she feels light-headed looking into that smile and those bright green eyes. “You’re one of us now. We might not be in a good situation but at least we have each other.” She flicks her hand to the other ladies observing their exchange. “Welcome to our sisterhood, Taylor.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Two**

 

After applying ointment on the gashes from the whipping on Taylor’s back, with little complaining coming from the twenty year old girl, Karlie introduces her to the other women in the room who kept quiet as she and Cara tended to her earlier. Most of them have been snatched away from their families and homes when they were sixteen, forced to become part of the ‘service crew’ for the guests, and were later turned into sex slaves when The Queen thought they were already trained and tamed enough for a more intimate and repulsive service.

Others were prisoners of war, princesses who were traded for money and power by their greedy and uncaring fathers, and some were just like her: taken from wherever they were because they caught The Princess’ eye. How very unfortunate of them to have been there the same time as The Princess.

They’re all of a mature age when they were captured except for Cara who was taken when she was twelve and Karlie who chose not to say anything about her past and how she ended up with them.

“It’s too painful for her,” Ella, one of the younger and friendly girls, whispers in her ear when she asked about it and Karlie just gave her a sad smile and turned away. “She said she was only a child when they took her; been here longer than anyone else.”

“One of the reasons why The Princess favours her,” Gigi pipes up from a corner where she sits, reading a book with a title Taylor can’t quite decipher. She detects a bit of envy in the girl’s voice and she wonders why she’d be envious of Karlie. Gigi is beautiful, too, like Karlie and everyone else in the room (though Taylor finds Karlie a bit more attractive but _that’s just because she’s always smiling_ ). She’s one of the few princesses who were sold by their fathers to The Queen and maybe that’s the reason why she sounds so hostile.

“Also the reason why they listen to her when she pleads not to hurt _us_ when we’ve done something wrong in their eyes,” Ella counters, protective of the girl who’s now busy laughing at something Cara said. They were in the adjoining room/kitchen, preparing for dinner with several other girls helping them cook. They have some sort of routine and schedule when it comes to their chores. “Why you can’t be just grateful to her is beyond me, Gigi.”

Gigi looks up from her book and sets it aside. _Oh no_. Taylor knows what that action meant. She’d do the same thing when she’s serious and shit’s about to go down.

“Why, pray tell, should I be grateful to her,” Gigi starts, voice low but laced with venom. “when all I get from The Princess is whips and chains because I’m _not as good and as well behaved as Karlie_?”

Taylor can see the unshed tears in Gigi’s eyes and feels sympathy towards the girl. She’s trying to mask the pain and insecurities by being angry but Taylor knows the anger is directed at the wrong person. She shouldn’t be furious at Karlie for being the favourite, she probably hates it, too, if the look on her face earlier from being mocked as the favoured one was anything to go by.

“Well, maybe, you should listen carefully to their instructions next time, huh?” Ella replies. “Karlie has always been a sister to you. It wasn’t her fault that you decided to disobey The Queen because you felt like doing it.”

Gigi barks a bitter laugh and Taylor wants to tell them to stop but the mere fact that she’s new here and doesn’t really know what happened prior makes her think twice about it. She doesn’t think her interfering will help Gigi to calm down.

“At least I’m not some pet who can’t even think for herself.”

Ella gives her a dirty look. “You don’t know what Karlie goes through to keep us safe.”

“Safe?” Gigi scoffs. “Please, even _she_ isn’t safe from punishments. How can you-”

“That’s enough.”

They all look at the doorway of the kitchen to see Lily, glaring at Gigi and Ella with her arms crossed. She is in full mother mode, as Cara called it earlier when she also broke off a heated argument between two other girls. She’s one of the few women here to whom the girls actually listen.

Lily gestures at Gigi. “Gi, I know you’re still upset about what happened last week, but please, don’t take it out on your sister.” Gigi huffs at _sister_ and Lily frowns at her. “This is the fourth time this week. We have rules here.”

She turns to Ella. “And you, El, we talked about this. I know you adore and think highly of Karlie but at the expense of offending your sister? Gigi’s been through a lot, I hope you remember that.”

Ella actually has the decency to look ashamed of what she did but Gigi just crosses her arms in a clear way of saying that she doesn’t care. Lily regards them both and sighs in exasperation. This isn’t probably the first fight between the two girls and it certainly doesn’t seem the last.

“I heard my name.” Karlie pokes her head from behind Lily, eyes wide in question. “Everything cool?” She looks at the scene in front of her: Ella with a kicked puppy look on her face, Gigi who is now back to reading – _scowling at_ – her book, and Taylor who looks caught in the middle of a crossfire. She turns to ask Lily and the older woman just waves her off.

“It’s been taken care of,” Lily says before going back inside the kitchen to probably continue what she was doing earlier.

Ella stands up and goes to her bunker on the other side of the room and Karlie is about to follow her when Taylor grabs her wrist. She shakes her head at her. “Let her cool down.” She knows from experience that a girl needs a time alone after an argument, whether she won it or not. She and Abigail always got into fights and they would go to separate corners to let off steam and come back later at the dining room to apologize to each other. Though it looks like it’s not the same for Gigi and Ella.

Taylor pats the space Ella has vacated next to her and gestures for Karlie to sit down. “They were arguing about you,” she tells the brunette as soon as she’s settled beside her. She sees the other girl frown and look at the two girls involved.

“Me being the favourite?” Karlie asks and Taylor nods and swears she sees tears in those green eyes before she blinks and then they’re gone. She probably feels guilty about what happened and Taylor is affected by the gloomy look on the girl’s face. She’s only been here for a few hours but she’s already used to seeing the girl radiate sunshine with her smile.

Karlie sighs and her shoulders hunch down. “Gigi hates me and I don’t understand why.” Taylor itches to respond when Karlie remains silent for a few minutes but knows by the look from the other girl’s face that she just needs to let her feelings out in the open. “She and Ella would always argue about me being the favourite and it’s always the same old cycle of things. Gigi will accuse me of being treated differently from the others and Ella will defend me by saying that The Princess’ favouritism saves them from landing in hot waters.” Karlie shakes her head, eyes downcast and Taylor tentatively puts her hand on the girl’s arm.

“I don’t want my sisters fighting because of me.” Karlie looks at her and despite Taylor’s reservations with touching other people, she pulls Karlie into a hug. The brunette wraps her own arms around Taylor and she feels the tension on the girl’s shoulder and just wants to tell her that it’s going to be okay but knows better of it. Based on what she just witnessed, Gigi is one stubborn woman and full of self-loathing and hatred. Taylor knows that she is the kind of girl who will never surrender to anyone even when she’s wrong. She’ll shut her mouth but thinks deep inside that her claims are always right. Ella, on the other hand, may have good intentions but she expresses it in a way that may offend the one she’s conversing with. A problematic combination.

“Arguments between girls are natural, Karlie,” Taylor says, rubbing soothing circles on the sniffing girl’s back. _My sister and I argues all the time_ , she wants to say but holds back. This isn’t about her.

Karlie pulls back and wipes at her eyes with the back of her hand. She must be so attached to the girls here to look so distressed with a simple argument between them. “I know but I hate it. I hate it when instead of helping and supporting each other, girls bring down and claw at the others who are in a better state.” The brunette quietly laughs to herself. “I must look silly crying over such a thing. One would probably think that after spending years here, the torture and depravity would’ve toughened me up already.” She waves a hand at herself. “But look at me.”

“You seem pretty tough to me,” Taylor says with a smile and blushing cheeks, noticing the way Karlie’s arm flexes as she moves her hair away from her face. After she’s witnessed the cruelty inflicted upon the women here by the monarchs, Taylor feels mortified of herself for even staring at Karlie in a different way. She’s no different from them if she looks at Karlie like she’s only an object of desire.

“Well, there are lots of lifting heavy objects here,” Karlie says, bringing Taylor back to the present.

“You girls do everything around here?”

The brunette nods. “We’ve also set a bunch of rules to keep the harmony. Living in a small room is a bit difficult and has its pros and cons but we get to at least have a decent sleep and retain some privacy in here, which is nice.”

“Have you had no privacy before?”

“Not with the old rules of The Queen, no.” Karlie doesn’t elaborate further and Taylor has to hold herself back from asking too many questions. She doesn’t want to come off as intrusive or nosy.

“I can feel your curiosity rolling off in waves, Taylor.” Karlie has a shit-eating grin on her face and she wonders how the girl can easily switch moods. “Ask away.”

Taylor’s cheeks flame in embarrassment of being so read easily. “Uhm, t-the rules. What were they?”

“Well, I used to sleep at the foot of The Queen’s bed with nothing but a collar on.”

“You _what_?” Taylor practically shrieks. An image of a very tall brunette curled up in a fetal position at the mercy of The Queen, shivering and with nothing to protect her from the cold temperature of the room and humiliation comes unbidden to her mind and she shudders. _Poor Karlie_. She suffered different kinds of depravity and yet she still manages to smile.

Karlie shrugs like it’s no big deal. “I was younger, then.”

Taylor opens her mouth to speak but only garbled noises come out. A younger Karlie, pretending to be asleep due to The Queen’s commands, sobbing quietly to avoid another whipping. Taylor puts a hand on her mouth to stop a whimper from escaping.

Karlie notices the change of her demeanour and puts a hand on her arm. “Taylor, are you okay?”

Taylor tries to nod but a tear slips from her eyes and she curses herself for being so weak. If that simple image of degradation makes her whine like a baby, what more if she experiences it first-hand?  Oh, she knows what. She’s going to retch her guts out and get whipped several times. Just her luck.

Karlie curses under her breath. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have given you such explicit details. I know you’re still recovering.” She wraps her arms around Taylor and the blonde lets herself rest against the girl’s shoulder. _She lost her family and was taken here to be humiliated and objectified yet she still manages to smile like everything is all right. How she does that is beyond astonishing,_ Taylor thinks, letting the even breathing of the brunette lull her into a state of peace and calm.

“I’ve experienced a lot worse, so don’t feel too bad for me. I survived,” Karlie whispers against Taylor’s hair and she holds on to the brunette tighter. She can’t imagine Karlie going through worse things. She doesn’t _want_ to. She knows she only spent a few minutes in Karlie’s company but somehow the always-beaming girl has already attached herself to Taylor. There is something about the older girl that Taylor finds captivating and maybe it’s her strength to carry on after everything or maybe the way she cares for the girls she calls her sisters or the way she smiles through the pain but Taylor knows for a fact that she wants to know the other girl better. Hint of attraction set aside.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for taking so long in uploading. I've already written this chapter last month but college is a bitch and I had no decent internet connection. :(
> 
> Again, I have no beta so typos and grammatical errors are all mine.
> 
> And now unto the next chapter...

**Chapter Three**

  
She’s bored. If Taylor is being honest with herself, having nothing to do doesn’t sit well with her. Karlie won’t let her go anywhere near the kitchen insisting that she needs to rest and “let the experts handle this”. Being the household head of their house, she’s not used to just watching people mill and fuss around her, all the movement makes her dizzy and feel more isolated and useless. She doesn’t do useless. Never.

And even if she won’t tell a living soul, she has to admit to herself it isn’t really the notion of being useless that really bothers her but the fact that doing nothing brings back memories she desperately wants to forget. Her family is dead. Some of her friends, too. But she’s here, breathing and just staring at nothing but air, doing none of the things she’s promised as the guards hauled her away from the plaza.

_Tears and blood run down her face and she should wipe them away, be disgusted of herself and feel mortified for disgracing the honor and image of their family by such an ugly look on her, but she feels as though there is nothing left in her to care about such silly notions. There is nothing but a void of black and white and red. Red, so much red splattered all over._

_Bloody footprints on the floorboards, spattered blood against the windows and furniture, trails of gore on the stairs and on the books torn in half on the floor. There was nothing but red all over and she wishes that by wiping it away from her face, her hand will also clean it from her mind. Her body will be cleansed from the past, wounds will heal, bruises will fade but her mind and soul will never be the same. Not until she gets her revenge._

_She puts her hand against the window as the carriage sets in motion and she swears on this day forward until the day she breathes her last breath that she will give justice to their deaths, to the dreams and lives they ruined with whips and swords._ They _will pay and they will work hard until every price has been paid._

_She doesn’t stop crying but neither does she stop thinking. She will make The Queen and The Princess pay for what they’ve done to her family and friends. It’ll be easy, she thinks, because once inside the room, there will be no guards and she is nothing if not resourceful._

_But fate has never been on her side since day one. No, no, no. Fate has more trick up its sleeve that will put a seasoned magician to shame and retirement._

Taylor feels anger towards herself. Her grief and plan of revenge have driven her to stay calm the whole ride to the castle, silently planning and reminiscing her loved ones to fuel the rage inside her, but once she was thrown in the room, she cowered in fear and disgust. She should have expected the scene before her but not even the most explicit and horrifying stories about the torture done to the slaves she’s heard over the years hit close to home. No, those stories didn’t even paint the actual torture a decent picture.

Bile rises in her throat as her brain skirts along the line of what she’s witnessed and Taylor decides to help out in the kitchen despite Karlie’s reminders. She’d rather face a pissed off girl than go down memory lane and torment herself even further.

She gathers herself and goes to her feet just as Cara runs up to her, fear in her eyes. “What’s wrong?” she asks, looking over Cara’s shoulder to see the other girls mumbling and scrambling around, tidying up their beds, putting away their laundry, and sweeping the floor. The room looks even messier as they try to clean it up in a hurry. “What’s going on?”

“T-the Queen is here,” the younger girl answers and Taylor flinches at the words despite trying hard not to for Cara’s sake; the girl is practically cowering in fear and Taylor has an idea why. The Queen will pick a girl to serve her for the night. She was thinking of her sadistic streak mere minutes ago.

 _Shit_.

“Karlie told me to keep you in the kitchen while The Queen makes a show of picking up a girl tonight,” Cara explains and tugs at Taylor’s hand, gesturing to the kitchen. “You’ll stay there to make sure she doesn’t come for you. If she picks you now that you’re yet to be trained, it’ll cause a bigger problem.”

Taylor starts to protest but hears rather than sees the movements stop at the same time the hand in hers freeze as the tell-tale click of heels on the floor sounds in the room.

“Well, well, well, my pets,” The Queen says, her sultry voice floating in the now silent room. “Good evening.”

“Good evening, Your Majesty,” is the chorused reply. Cara has dropped to her knees with her head bowed and Taylor feels a moment of panic as she watches The Queen survey the room. Luckily for her, she isn’t yet spotted but it’s only a matter of time before The Queen sees her standing there amongst the kneeling women. She resolves to follow their position when a hand on her arm grabs her and pulls her away from the royalty’s line of sight and into the safety of the secluded kitchen.

“What were you doing there?” Karlie hisses at her, nostrils flaring. Before Taylor has the chance to respond, the brunette continues. “I’ve told Cara to specifically trap you in here to ensure your safety and then I see you standing there waiting for what? A basket of goods coming down from the heavens? Are you crazy or looking for another torture?”

Taylor feels a flare of anger at Karlie’s words and tone tinged with accusation. How dare she? Unable to hold it in especially after everything that’s happened to her, she whispers, “I didn’t know what I was supposed to do!” Her tone was full of supressed anger but knowing full well The Queen can hear her if she so much raises her voice an octave, she kept it low. “She got here before Cara can hide me away and I don’t know what to do. Maybe if you taught me the _basics_ I wouldn’t be looking like a lost puppy in the middle of a war!”

Karlie appears to be shocked of the other girl’s outburst and is mentally kicking herself for snapping. She looks way more tired and rigid right now than she was earlier. “I’m sorry I snapped at you.” She runs a hand through her hair, exasperated. “I panicked when I didn’t see you under the kitchen table.”

“You were going to hide me under a table?” Taylor asks, incredulous. She did not just say that.

Karlie gives her a small, wry smile. “No choice. If you kneel like the rest of us, she will notice you because of your posture. We’re all trained to kneel at a certain way.”

 _Well_ , Taylor thinks, another evidence that The Queen is batshit crazy. _Who trains people to kneel at a certain way? Crazy sadistic bitches with power that’s who._

Taylor hears The Queen talking to the women in the other room. That gives them time but right now, that isn’t enough to keep them safe from The Queen’s wrath when she sees them talking. She’s seen enough to know what the monarch is capable of doing.  
“What do you suggest, then?”

“Hide under the table,” Karlie says the same time The Queen asks, “Where is Karlie?”

“Shit, shit, _shit_ ,” the brunette mutters under her breath as she practically shoves Taylor down and under the dining table. The blonde glares up at her but says nothing, just folds into herself. “Stay there.”

“Like I have a choice.”

“We’ll talk about this attitude and temper of yours later.” Karlie smirks before shuffling away from Taylor and kneeling at the entry of the kitchen that is out of sight of The Queen.

“Karlie?” The Queen asks and Taylor balls her hands into fists. Something about the tone of The Queen makes her want to throw up. It’s obvious the brunette is the favourite and the fact doesn’t sit well with her. Damn it, not now, feelings.

“There you are, my pet.”

Taylor blanches when she catches The Queen’s murmured words whispered to Karlie, she’s close enough to hear her but not completely derailed to want to decipher whatever the evil queen was uttering. She just hoped that whatever god she hasn’t offered her wishes up to you yet would help her survive this experience.

She sees the stiff curve of Karlie’s shoulders and knows the brunette is trying hard to contain her movements. That control must be from all the training she’s had for years, Taylor thinks and feels her stomach churn. She can’t imagine Karlie as a child, crying herself to sleep after a day of being subjected to degradation by the people who certainly kidnapped her from her family and home. She’s twenty and she can’t even contain her breakfast through the punishment The Queen gave her earlier, what more a child? And an abducted one at that? Again, Taylor is in awe and taken aback by how the girl still manages to smile after everything. She can barely return Cara’s smile earlier after she’s been tossed inside the slaves’ room but Karlie? The brightness of her grin rivals the sun’s and it must take a lot of effort to do such thing every day for so many years.

Taylor is pulled from her thoughts when she feels a pair of eyes subtly watching her and looks up to see that Karlie is indeed looking at her and… is trying to tell her something.  
That’s when she gets it.

“…. don’t see that new girl anywhere,” The Queen says and Taylor’s blood runs cold. _Fuck_. She’s looking for her. _Fuck_.

Karlie’s eyes snap back down to the floor as Taylor hears the approaching click of heels. When did she walk away in the first place, anyway? Taylor has been so caught up in her thoughts that she forgot The Queen hasn’t finished her business here yet and that she’s under a damn table, hiding and is probably being hunted by the monarch herself.

“Where is she, Karlie?”

Taylor watches as the kneeling girl gulps and seizes herself to answer the question. Then she suddenly wants to bang her head against the table when she realizes that Karlie is probably going to lie. To The Queen. For her sake. She’s gonna lie, Taylor turns the words in her head over and over again and feels a stab of guilt in her chest. Karlie is going to deceit The Queen; the one who probably knows every tone the brunette uses and their corresponding meanings, and has a built-in lie detector hidden deep inside her evil body.

Karlie opens her mouth to respond when Taylor decides that she’s not going to keep hidden and safe while watching someone pay the cost of her welfare. She’s had enough of that to last a lifetime.

“I’m here, Your Majesty,” she says as she crawls out under the furniture and two pairs of eyes snap at her sudden appearance, one which is slightly amused and curious and the other which is shocked and glaring daggers at her.

If Karlie has heat vision, Taylor will be roast by now.

The blond kneels by the foot of the table and bows her head the way she’s seen the other girls did. She tunes in to The Queen as she chuckles under her breath.

“Hiding under a table?” Taylor can almost hear her sneer as she walks towards where she’s kneeling. “How cowardly of you."

Taylor bites down a sarcastic reply, she’d put her foot in her mouth before and she doesn’t want a repeat performance of what happened later. Instead, she focuses on the feeling of Karlie’s glare at the top of her head and sends her a silent apology. The older girl must be fuming with anger at the moment.

“What were you doing under the table, hm?” Gloved-fingers tip her chin up and Taylor looks at anywhere but The Queen’s penetrating gaze. She’s going to keep silent this time. “Cat got your tongue, dear?”

Taylor bites the inside of her cheek. _Don’t reply, don’t speak,_ she tells herself _. Do nothing. The right time will come._

The grip on her chin tightens and the monarch jerks her head to look her straight in the eye. “Answer me, slave. Are you scared of what I’m going to do to you?”

Taylor lets out a silent, “Yes, Your Majesty,” before dropping her gaze again.

The Queen chuckles quietly and lets go of her. “I see you’ve learned your lesson,” she states, a slightly impressed tone seeping in her voice. “And only in a few hours. That’s awfully fast, especially for a rebel like you.” The monarch tilts Taylor’s chin up and smiles at the defiance she sees in her eyes.

They both know why Taylor is biting her tongue and The Queen is enjoying the façade she’s putting up for the women she barely knows. The young blonde practically vibrates with anger as The Queen observes her, waiting for her resolve to crack. 

 _Not this time_ , Taylor thinks as she ignores the pins and needles in her knees. The Queen won’t have the pleasure of seeing her lose her temper again.

Taylor dares to lift her gaze to look at Karlie and the brunette is staring right back at her, frown clear on her face as she kneels a few feet away from them, just waiting on how everything will play out. Taylor knows the other girl wants to do something – strangle her for putting herself in this position, maybe – but like Taylor, Karlie also doesn’t want to risk anything with the other women in the room. The Queen is a sadist and she will surely enjoy when one – or worse, both – of them snaps and gets to be punished in front of everyone in the room. They don’t need the emotional and mental scars that will surely bring.

Light caresses on her cheeks bring Taylor back to reality and she barely supresses the shudder that runs through her. “Tell me,” The Queen whispers as she bends down, her lips now a mere inch away from Taylor’s ear and this time, she can’t help the shiver that shots through her body at the contact of the monarch’s breath against her skin, “you like Karlie, don’t you?”

The question catches Taylor off guard and she whips her head up and opens her mouth to say something that will certainly put them in danger before regaining control over her body again.

The Queen laughs quietly at her reaction but remains close to her, waiting for her reply, eyes glinting with mirth and some knowledge Taylor surely doesn’t have a clue about. How can The Queen possibly know that the younger girl already has some kind of connection with the brunette? They haven’t interacted in front of her and surely she was subtle with giving Karlie looks… _right_? _Shit_. The monarch must have known Taylor’s intentions – and possibly feelings – when she crawled out the damn table. That was what gave her away. _Shit_.

“Can’t blame you,” The Queen mutters, as if Taylor already gave her an answer and throws a glance at Karlie over her shoulder before continuing, “She is one fine specimen of a lady.” It was said so casually any outsider who might have heard it may interpret it as a compliment. But Taylor knows better than to fall for the deceiving voice of The Queen. She’s trying to get a rise out of her. And by the smug grin on the monarch’s face as she straightens up, she knows the young girl is near her boiling point. Not that it’s difficult to reach.

 _Damn it_.

Taylor watches her as The Queen _winks_ before sauntering over to Karlie and kissing her right on the mouth in front of her and she doesn’t know if the tightening in her chest is because of abhorrence and anger or jealousy and helplessness. She wishes it is the former. God help her if it’s because of jealousy. She barely knows the brunette, she has no right to be jealous and besides, she reasons to herself, Karlie doesn’t like The Queen even one bit.

She closes her eyes and focuses on her breathing. If she reacts poorly, she and Karlie and the other girls in the room will suffer from god-knows-what.

Why did she ever think crawling out of that table was a good idea? She should have let Karlie answer for her, yet, the mere thought of surrendering the brunette to the devil makes Taylor lightheaded. The moment she was thrown in this room, the girl has been anything but harsh to her and Taylor knows how to pay her debts although maybe she has it all twisted up in her head because now the she-devil is looking at her like she’s a pig ready to be butchered.

“Karlie,” The Queen says without breaking her gaze on Taylor, “stand up.”

The brunette quickly obeys and Taylor swallows as she waits the next commands. She doesn’t know what the monarch is playing at and it unnerves her.

The Queen walks to Taylor and the younger girl tries not to swallow the lump in her throat. “You, too,” she orders and Taylor rises – as steadily as she can – to her feet. She has to show she has control of herself. If she displays any indication of her fear – though she is sure The Queen can undoubtedly smell that coming off her in waves, but still she needs to try – she can’t even begin to imagine what the evil queen will have in store for her – them – if she sees how terrified Taylor is.

_Them._

_“Karlie told me to keep you in the kitchen while The Queen makes a show of picking up a girl tonight… You’ll stay there to make sure she doesn’t come for you. If she picks you now that you’re yet to be trained, it’ll cause a bigger problem.”_

The realization hits Taylor like a carriage that lost its chauffeur and she has no time to get out of the way before The Queen walks out the kitchen and into the room with the other women who are still kneeling, waiting.

Taylor runs to Karlie to try and tell her but one look from the brunette and she skids to a halt.

_Don’t make this any worse._

“My lovely pets,” The Queen announces, smile and triumph evident in her tone, “I have decided that tonight, Karlie and the newcomer, Taylor will see to my needs _accordingly_.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be some /torture/ in this chapter. Just so you know. If that's not your cup of tea, you can skip this although it's a /bit/ important for the plot and it's not that explicit.

**Chapter Four**

If there is another thing that Taylor hates more than spiders, it’s the way The Queen’s eyes light up as if she found the cure for cancer. Sure, she is a sadist and the devil reincarnation pretending to be a ruler of a small, secluded country but she is also shrewd – she seizes up her prey and calculates every angle of possible attack before pouncing; she lays out a plan before taking action and that makes her more dangerous and harder to read. The Queen plots ahead and Taylor has half a mind to use one of the canes, hanging on the far side of the wall, to bash her head in. She is quite sure they won’t mind if they lost one. After all, they will still have _eleven_ left to their collection.

And while Taylor is reluctant to admit it, The Queen is also very creative, if the _props_ in the room are anything to go by.

Taylor has seen them before, of course, when the guards dragged her in after The Princess and she was plotting the bloodiest murder that would be recorded in history but at the time she saw them as a weapon of revenge, a way to put a halt to whatever the royalties are doing to the people of the country, and not as something that is used to inflict pain after pain without killing the victim. Physically, at least.

Kneeling by the door, Taylor regrets her moment of terror and weakness. She had the chance and she blew it. They didn’t have to be here if only she only kept her mouth shut and stomach under control; there would have been retribution if only she grabbed the nearest thing beside her when she had the chance but no, it’s entirely too late to dwell on what ifs. At this point, she will be glad if she survives the torture first-hand.

“It’s not torture, you know,” The Queen says suddenly and Taylor thinks for half a second that the monarch can also read minds. “There is a fine line between pain and pleasure and if you think that what we do is painful, then it is.” She saunters her way to Karlie who is kneeling at the middle of the room, a few feet away from Taylor, and tilts the brunette’s chin up to plant a chaste kiss on her lips. “But,” she continues as her gaze falls on Taylor, “if you set your mind to it, the pain can become pleasurable.”

Disagreement is at the tip of Taylor’s tongue but she purses her lips to stop herself from reacting. _Don’t make things worse._

The Queen makes her way to Taylor and the younger woman bites the inside of her cheek to avoid spitting on the Queen’s bare feet, visible because of the cream colored dress that only reaches her knees. Apparently, the outfit is made for and worn inside one particular occasion and room – the _torture-sex chamber,_ as the townspeople and slaves called it.

“That’s what I always tell them,” the blonde hears The Queen whisper in her ear. “Yet, every time they come here, they would be cowering in fear,” the monarch continues as she straightens up and paces around the room again.

Taylor watches warily as The Queen pours herself a drink from a decanter of what she presumes is scotch. She’s doing it in the most casual manner as if two women kneeling in a room decorated with torture tools is a picture of normalcy. And maybe it is, for _her_.

“I try to reassure them but a woman’s patience can run thin over time.” Her lips slowly curve into a sneer as she downs her drink and sets the glass on the table. “And mine has become thinner and thinner especially after what happened today.”

 _Today_. As if she can blame Taylor’s reaction to the girl’s stomach alone.

“So, Taylor,” The Queen says as she picks up a mahogany painted cane, maybe as thick as her thumb, from her cane collection hanging on the wall, “Karlie and I will show you how pain can be pleasurable. I’m tired of reassuring my pets with words and you are new. I think you deserve to witness the good side of this.”

“Thanks for the consideration but no thanks,” Taylor snaps and clamps a hand over her mouth.

“I-I’m sorry, Your Majesty,” she sputters when she sees Karlie glaring at her from her place.

Why does she always have to put herself and other people in danger because of her foot in mouth syndrome?

Imagine the surprise of both girls when The Queen chuckles. To be honest, Taylor anticipated a great whiplash from her retort but a _chuckle_? Definitely _not_ what she’s expecting.

“My pets are always so obedient,” The Queen declares, “it’s refreshing to have one so rebellious and hell-bent on proving she can’t be a submissive.” She turns towards Karlie and runs a hand through the brunette’s tresses, almost lovingly – if only the cane in her other hand doesn’t paint the opposite depiction of love.

Taylor swallows as she sees Karlie stiffen at the monarch’s touch and can do no more than clench her hands into fists. _Helpless_.

“Forget pain and pleasure, that lesson can wait. I have another one in mind.” A devilish smile. “Now –are you ready, my pet? Because I’m going to enjoy breaking you,” The Queen states and before Taylor can gauge the meaning behind those words, she sees the cane hitting Karlie’s backside with a loud slap and she gasps in surprise and horror. But Karlie – _oh god, how?_ – remains still, eyes shut tight as she tries to keep her pain to herself. No sound escaped her lips at the impact and Taylor is sure the cane hit home and _how does she even_?

On a scale of 1 to 10, a cane hit is probably a 1 for Karlie. _Worse_.

“I’m going to hit you ten times and I want you to count with me, Karlie,” The Queen orders, as she lands another blow on Karlie’s behind, a small smile forming on her lips as she sees the look of pure horror on Taylor’s face but the blonde can’t bring herself to care about the devil’s satisfaction. Not when the brunette’s looking – no, _pleading_ at her to look away, to not watch the scene in front of her.

“Count, Karlie.”

 _Smack_.

“One.” Karlie’s voice is small and lacks the enthusiasm she usually projects.

_Look away._

“Two.” She’s staring at Taylor, eyes half-closed and pleading.

_Don’t watch._

“Three.” There are now tears in her eyes and Taylor wants to brush them away.

_Please._

“Four.” Karlie’s voice is an octave lower and the next smack comes down harder.

_Taylor, don’t._

“Five.” A stray tear escapes her eyes and Taylor’s vision starts getting blurry.

_It hurts but -_

“Six.” Karlie blinks rapidly and sets her mouth in a thin line.

_I can handle it, just look away._

“Seven.” The Queen is breathing loudly, a small smirk playing on her lips.

_All I’m asking is for you to avert your eyes._

“Eigh –"

“Stop.”

The sound of wood hitting flesh ceases and Taylor can barely register the look on The Queen’s face through her bleary eyes. She belatedly realizes that she’s crying and Karlie’s looking at her with a mix of confusion, shock, and gratefulness on her face. But mostly shock. _So much for not making things worse._

The Queen lowers her arm that was holding the cane and the pleased grin on her face from hitting Karlie morphs into a frown. “What did you just say?”

“I said, stop, Your Majesty.” She stares at her head-on, not backing down despite the venomous glare the monarch’s sending her way. Taylor knows she should’ve just let the whole thing play out but she couldn’t – she wouldn’t. Karlie may have experienced worse but she’s not going to get punished for Taylor’s inability to think before jumping into action.

“And why, pray tell, would I do that?”

 _She’s humouring me. Good._ “You said you wanted to break me, Your Highness,” Taylor begins quietly, not wanting to push her any further; she’s done enough of that today. “Then by all means, do. Do it to me, not to Karlie. Punish me. _Break me._ ” They all know she’s playing a dangerous game, Taylor especially, but she couldn’t just kneel and watch someone else take the brunt of her actions. She let her family and friends suffer without really fighting to help them and she can’t let it happen again. She may not survive this whole (Who is she kidding? She’s broken the moment they’d thrown her in the carriage and made her watch her loved ones’ execution) but at least she knows she tried.

The Queen’s head is titled on one side and she’s regarding Taylor with an amused expression. “Interesting.”

Taylor gapes at the monarch’s curt response and she is at the brink of bargaining her life in exchange for Karlie’s when she sees The Queen nodding her head slowly. “Makes sense.”

It really doesn’t but Taylor isn’t about to stammer out a word anytime soon, not when The Queen is circling Karlie, holding the cane like a baton. She’s contemplating her next action and the blonde hopes it’s in her favour – or at least in her terms. None of the events lately has been in her favour.

“Okay.”

Two sets of wide eyes snap at The Queen’s direction and Taylor is pretty sure she’s misheard the monarch.

“You asked for it,” The Queen says conversationally as she wipes the cane with a white cloth on the table and puts it back on the wall. “You asked me to break you and _break you I shall_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I have no beta, so sorry for the typos and errors.
> 
> Also who is excited to see Taylor perform again? Because I am!!!!!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was gonna post this sooner but life got in the way. Anyway, here is the next chapter.  
> Torture TW
> 
> No betas so apologies for errors!

**Chapter Five**

Taylor hates being helpless.

She was ten when Austin broke his arm trying to climb up a tree and she just stood there, in shock after seeing his brother fall from the branches. Their father was already there, having been shearing the grass on their lawn and he jumped into action as soon as he heard a loud crash from behind him.

She followed them inside, asking her mother if she could be of help but she brushed her away saying ‘the adults could handle it.’ So she stood back and watched them as they put bandages around his brother’s arm, trying to soothe his crying all the while.

Five years later, she was definitely older and more responsible but when the rallies began, her mother just ushered them all inside.

 _“I need you to guard your siblings,”_ her mother had ordered and despite Taylor’s claims that she should be out there with her father, her mother was having none of it.

The most recent one, of course, was her family’s murder.

She hated every second of those three incidents; firstly because her family was in harm’s way and secondly because she was incapable of doing anything about it. She was powerless and Taylor swore she would never be again but considering how much fate has started to hate her, of course she’d be put in a position where she’s just an onlooker of a terrible situation.

And right now, Taylor wishes she has a time machine to bring her back to the past and kill The Queen even before she was born, because _goddammit_ , how long is she planning to subject them to this excruciating torture?

The Queen is circling Taylor with a whip in hand and her arms are going numb for being chained to the shackles attached to the ceiling for god knows how long. Sweat, tears, and blood stain and run down her face and her throat is dry due to crying and screaming. Her hair is a tangled mess and the flimsy dress she was wearing earlier was now just a scarp of fabric on the floor. Taylor is quite sure she will die from cold, exhaustion and thirst – that is if blood loss and infection get to her first.

The Queen hits the floor with her whip, the crack echoing in the spacious room and it takes Taylor all the energy left in her to open her eyes. She’s been trying – and failing – to anticipate where The Queen would strike her next to at least brace herself for the pain but of course, even her blows are unpredictable. The Queen started out slow, hitting Taylor in different places with a minute or two intervals in between but as her momentum and excitement grew, her strikes became relentless and harder. The beating is even worse because her wounds from earlier haven’t fully healed yet and having them get hit again causes twice the agony.

The whip kisses the underside of her breast this time and no matter how much she tries, she cries out in pain, voice cracking. Taylor faintly hears Karlie’s intake of breath. She’s been an unfortunate audience to her torture and she has been clutching the sides of her dress so tightly that the fabric is nearly tearing apart. Taylor knows Karlie wants to do something – _anything_ – but one wrong move and they will both end up in a worse condition. If there is anything worse than _this_ , that is.

Taylor believes in reincarnations and life after death and whatever she did in her past life, it sure is catching up to her now. She can’t help but wonder, however, what had she done so awful that she’s being tortured and used for the pleasure of someone else?

The Queen is breathing heavily – maybe from the exertion of her blows but one look into her eyes and Taylor deduces it’s because of _arousal_.

_How fucked up is she?_

“I haven’t done this for so long,” The Queen declares as if what she’s doing is a recreational activity as simple as horseback riding. “I almost forgot how good it feels to let out my pent up anger on my _pet_.”

Taylor had two pet cats before and while she’s a person easily pissed, she sure as hell never hurt – or worse _tortured_ Olivia and Meredith by chaining them up and whipping them until they bled. Just the idea of doing that to her cats makes her sick to the bones. Instead, she tries to remember the times when the two feline would be able to easily lift her spirits up – Meredith looking like an old frustrated human and Olivia pawing innocently at flowers in their lawn. For the hundredth time that day, Taylor wishes for things to be different.

“Tired yet?” The Queen taunts as she lays another blow on Taylor, who stifles her scream by biting down on her lip, hard enough to draw blood. _Great, more blood loss._

“Don’t supress your screams,” The Queen barks, hitting the blonde again and Taylor cries out and she’s sure that had nothing to do with the monarch’s command. “I want to hear you.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Taylor sees Karlie close her eyes and take a deep breath. She may be suffering physical pain but Karlie, _poor Karlie_ , is getting mentally scarred for the rest of her life and she doesn’t know what’s worse. Wounds heal, blood replenishes, but being unable to do anything but watch someone suffering is forever etched on a person’s heart and mind. Taylor would know, she’s already experienced it.

“I’m surprised you haven’t said anything yet,” The Queen says, mild amusement evident in her voice. “At this point I thought you would’ve already begged but you _haven’t_.” She circles Taylor, the end of the whip trailing behind her. “I must say I am quite impressed.”

Pleasing people always brings Taylor joy but after hearing the monarch, she might as well forget how to be nice to others.

The Queen continues, “For that, this is the last set for you _today_.”

She hears the crack of the whip before it touches her and a broken sob – _mine or Karlie’s?_ – is the last thing she recalls hearing before everything fades to black.

 

* * *

 

  
When Taylor comes around, her arms are no longer shackled and Karlie is holding her precariously against her chest, mindful of her wounds – which cover almost every inch of her skin.

 _I feel like I’ve been skinned alive and left out under the sun to dry_ , Taylor thinks as an image of dried fish comes unbidden to her mind.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, _I’m sorry_ ,” Karlie mutters over and over again, tears streaming down her anguished face. A beautiful angel like her shouldn’t be crying. _Why is she crying?_

Taylor opens her mouth to speak – to say none of what happened was her fault – but Karlie shushes her before she can speak and holds her even closer, clutching the cloth wrapped around Taylor’s shoulders. When did she get covered? And why is the fabric white? That’s white, right? She will stain it with her blood and Taylor knows from experience that blood is a difficult stain to remove; she wants to chastise Karlie for being careless about such a trivial thing but her throat feels like sandpaper got stuck in it and a few marbles and sand are added for insurance that she won’t be using it in a while.

“I did nothing to help you,” Karlie whispers, slightly rocking back and forth and Taylor wonders if the action is meant to comfort her or Karlie herself. “I’m so sorry, Taylor, I could’ve done something. I should have. I promised you I won’t let them hurt you but I –” Her voice cracks and more tears run down her face.

 _Karlie, oh Karlie, it wasn’t your fault_ , Taylor wants to say but she feels like all her energy is drained up and it’s only sheer will that’s making her awake and focused on the other girl.

Karlie wipes her eyes with the back of her hand and takes a deep breath before putting her arm behind Taylor’s knees and the other one on her back and carrying her bridal style. She closes her eyes at the solid feeling of arms holding her and revels in the faint scent of lavender and something _so uniquely Karlie_. _She’s so strong and smells good too_ , Taylor thinks, unable to stop the feeling of admiration towards the brunette. _If Karlie will carry me to heaven, I won’t be complaining._

Taylor feels something soft touch her forehead but with her eyes closed and the sensation of weightlessness, she can’t bring herself to check what it was. Something gentle won’t hurt her, anything soft is not a whip and that’s what matters. And surely, Karlie won’t let anyone hurt her.

Taylor faintly hears a door opening and closing and footsteps echoing but everything else seems dulled by her mother’s soft lullaby in her ears. Her mother always hums melodies to her to help her fall asleep and Taylor makes up words as she goes along, content to lay in bed with love and warmth surrounding her.

 _There will be no monsters tonight,_ Mom says, _I will chase them away. As long as I’m here, nothing will harm you, Taylor. Nothing._

She’s safe. She is _home_.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the super late update. I had a writer's block and a new semester has started and I got busy but here it is. :)
> 
> There will be a slight change in the POV in this chapter and the next few ones.

**Chapter Six**

Karlie can feel some of the blood soaking through her dress but she can’t give a single damn about anything but the woman in her arms right now.

Taylor has her eyes closed and her breathing is soft albeit a little laboured sometimes but Karlie will take whatever she can; Taylor is alive, _beaten up but alive_ and what’s important is to get her back to their room and have her wounds cleaned up and dressed.

Her hands unconsciously clenches the cloth she’s wrapped around Taylor’s body and she feels tears prick at her eyes. _Now is not the time to get emotional again, Kloss,_ she tells herself firmly and walks down the dim corridor with newfound determination. If Taylor got through all the whipping earlier, Karlie can carry her to safety with no emotional breakdowns along the way.

She is so immersed in checking if Taylor is still breathing that she doesn’t notice two armed guards blocking her path until she – or rather _Taylor_ smacks against them.

“What the fu–,” she fusses over Taylor’s side and arm getting hurt even more from the small collision before looking up and seeing two sets of dark eyes assessing her. _Of all the goddamned places…_

“Where are you taking her?” the taller of the two guards asks, eyeing the bruised girl in her arms. Karlie can’t see their faces with the helmets covering their heads – a piece of the armour The Queen has ordered the guards to wear after an unfortunate incident that involved teeth, hair, and some head gashes.

“Back to our room,” Karlie answers simply, not wanting to waste any time standing in the middle of a hallway chatting with men. The armoured guards usually just let her be, per The Princess’s order that Karlie is allowed to walk down the halls alone after she’s gone to the monarchs’ room, so she sidesteps them and thinks she can finally walk at peace again before they call out to her and orders her to stop. She’s so close to reaching their room, and pretending not to hear them and continuing is a tempting idea but Karlie knows that disobeying orders from high ranks and guards lead to nothing but a few punches strategically placed to neutralize a woman. She can fight them if she wants to, of course, but having an unconscious girl in her arms minimizes her chance of success. So, she halts and waits for them to come up to her.

“Isn’t she the new pet?”

It takes everything in Karlie to not slack him in the jaw. Being on the same height as the guard, she’ll catch his face perfectly because _goddamn these men_ and their twisted notion that they can call the women _pets_ just because The Queen does and they’re in a more decent position than the women.

“She is,” the other guard confirms before Karlie can answer without grinding her teeth. “She’s the governor’s daughter.”

_I know that, idiots. Now step aside and let me tend to her,_ Karlie thinks, wanting to smash their heads together and get the hell away from them. She’s not a violent person but she swears to all the gods –

“Hasn’t The Queen already beaten her up earlier when she arrived?” Tall Guard asks and Karlie is a second away from kicking him in the balls. They can gossip about Taylor all they want but she doesn’t really need to be a witness of it.

The guard nods at his companion before dropping his gaze to their topic of conversation. “Poor thing.” Karlie almost prefers him over Tall Guard because of the sympathy she hears in his voice.

That is until he opens his mouth again. “She’s really pretty. It’s a shame to beat up a body like that. Imagine all the things it’s capable of.” Laughter reaches Karlie’s ears and something just snaps in her.

She sees red and blood is rushing in her ears. She forgets where she is and all the reasons why she shouldn’t hurt someone, why she should just drop it and let them be. Suddenly, she was eleven all over again, walking in the garden and seeing a blonde girl crying and hiding her face on her knees with ugly princes circling her, laughing, taunting and embarrassing her.

She menatlly thanks Kristine for teaching her how to attack without using her hands and she swings her leg back and –

“Karlie!”

Her leg stops mid-swing and the hall goes back into focus and the two guards are looking past and behind her. Karlie is reminded of the woman in her arms and releases a shaky breath. She was close, _so close_.

Lily runs up to her, saying something to the guards that makes them glare at Karlie before nodding and turning their backs on them. Lily watches them go before grabbing Karlie’s arms and shaking some sense into her.

“Karlie Elizabeth Kloss!”

The exclamation of her full name finally gets through the haze of the past clouding her.

“Get your shit together,” Lily barks at her, full on mother mode. “Taylor needs you.”

Karlie looks down at Taylor whose face is getting paler by the second, and composes herself before giving Lily a nod and walking briskly to the room she shares with her sisters. Lily opens the door for her and starts assigning who’s getting and doing what to attend to Taylor.

Cara runs up to Karlie when she sees her carrying an unconscious Taylor and prepares the mattress on the far side of the room, helping Karlie settle Taylor down as gently as possible.

“Karlie,” Cara begins but the other girl simply shakes her head as she kneels down beside the bed and Cara lets her be and retreats to the kitchen to help the others with whatever they need. She knows Karlie long enough that one minute shake of the head means she doesn't want to talk about it and Karlie is glad that Cara understands that; she can’t handle talking to anyone until Taylor is taken care of.

Someone taps on her shoulder and Karlie moves a little to the side but takes Taylor’s hands in hers, offering her some kind of warmth and assurance. _I’m here._

The women in the room removes the white cloth – now almost red with blood – from Taylor’s body and starts cleaning her lacerations as thorough as they can. They’ve done this more times than they want to count and previous experiences has taught them that gentleness will only cause infection. The wounds are always going to cause some sting and no tender cleaning will erase that fact.

Karlie stares at Taylor’s face for any sign of discomfort and every now and then there will be a twitch of a jaw here and a furrowing of brows there but aside from those, she remains asleep.

“I’m sorry,” Karlie whispers as she brushes a stray lock from the unconscious girl’s face. “I should have done something.”

A gentle hand squeezes her arm and she glances at Lily who is offering her a smile of reassurance. “She’s going to be fine. We’re here for her. For _you_. Karlie, it wasn’t your fault. I know you’re blaming yourself but really there was nothing you could have –”

“No,” she cuts her off. “If only I taught her the basics, if I plead to The Queen to spare her since she’s just new and freshly beaten up, if I just…” Karlie trails off, choking on a sob.

“Stop that,” Lily demands, seeing the anguish in the other woman’s eyes. After learning what Taylor really means to Karlie, she knows why she is being too hard on herself. “This,” she gestures to the girl lying on the bed, “wasn’t your fault, okay? None of it was. The Queen would have gotten to her whatever you try to do but at least you were there for her and –”

“And I did nothing but watch!” Green eyes peek at Taylor to see if she was startled by the exclamation but she just lays there, unmoving and unaware of her surroundings.

Sensing Karlie’s hesitation to speak after her outburst, Lily ploughs on. “You knew disagreeing with The Queen brings nothing but trouble not only to one, but all of us.” Karlie flinches slightly at that but it’s enough indication that she’s getting through the girl somehow so Lily continues. “You were only looking out for your sisters and Taylor will never blame you for that. She may have known you for a short amount of time but I’m pretty sure she saw how much you care about the women here. She’ll understand. She will forgive you for not standing up for her, Karlie.”

“I’ll never forgive myself, though,” Karlie mumbles, her voice rough with emotion and tears.

Lily has nothing to counter that because no matter what she says, she knows Karlie is resolute on punishing herself. The only thing she can do now is to be there for her friend.

They lapse into silence, the only sounds in the room are water splashing and clothes tearing.

Karlie thinks back on how she failed to keep her promise to Taylor, and to make it worse, it wasn’t even the first time that she’s done so. She might have given her first promise to the girl when they were still children and Taylor might not be able to remember that, but for Karlie, the blonde kid she’d saved from bullies and had given her a kiss in return is the woman to whom she wants to make – and keep – promises, no matter what the consequences are.

However, with their situation, Karlie is scared of how many more promises she will make to the younger woman but be unable to keep.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Seven**

“For heaven’s sake, Kloss, you need to _eat_.”

Karlie shakes her head, holding onto Taylor’s hand. She’s not leaving the girl’s side and Lily, Ella, and Cara can fuss over her all they want but the only thing she needs and wants is to be there for Taylor when she wakes up.

The other women started talking about Karlie and her real connection with Taylor after her display of emotion and concern over the other woman. She’s never been so worried about anyone else before and the way she’s been acting was a sure way of telling them that there is _something else_ but Karlie only tunes them out. They can make assumptions and theories on as to why she won’t leave the girl’s side and the Karlie will give no fucks about them. They don’t know how much Taylor means to her. _Hell_ , even the woman in question is oblivious herself.

“You have to eat something. It’s been three days, Karlie,” Ella reminds her, worry etched across her face.

As if Karlie doesn’t know that. She’s been counting and as the days wore on, she gets more scared that Taylor will never wake up. She tries to remember if Taylor hit her head to cause a concussion but Karlie was sure she caught her when The Queen released her from the restraints. _She’s just drained_ , Karlie keeps telling herself. _Her body is trying to get its energy back, she’ll wake up soon._

“What would Taylor say if she finds out you haven’t been eating?” Lily asks with an impassive look on her face but Karlie knows better and sends her a glare instead.

“You play dirty, Lily. It didn’t work but nice try.”

Their collective sigh might have been enough to blow away the mattress if only Taylor isn’t lying on top of it.

After Lily intervened Karlie from attacking the guards, (thank gods for insufficient food supply and good timing) the closest women to her kept worrying about her health due to the lack of sleep and starvation diet.

“Karlie, come _on_.” Cara nudges her shoulder. “Don’t be such a pain in the ass.”

Both Lily and Ella reprimand her but Karlie only smiles. She appreciates their concern, she really does, but she can’t quell the fear and guilt gripping her very soul. They won’t go away and she knows the only tactic that she can do to at least lessen them is to be by Taylor’s side 24/7.

“I cooked this for you,” Cara mutters, offering her a bowl of hot corn soup. “Lily helped me so I’m pretty sure it tastes good and is safe to eat.”

Karlie’s lips turn up in a small smile. “That’s good for you, Cara, but really, I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“When someone doesn’t eat for three days, people tend to worry,” Lily states, all mother-hen mode. “Especially if that someone couldn’t live through the day without eating her home-baked cookies.”

“I haven’t baked for days.”

“Exactly! And why is that? Because you only leave Taylor’s side if you need to pee or shower. And that’s like, _only seven times in three days_.”

“No offense, Kloss, but you kinda stink,” Cara adds, helpful as ever.

“None taken.”

“ _Seriously?_ ”

Karlie sighs and turns her head to look at them. She ignores the way their faces crinkle up with concern after seeing her no-sleep-for days face. “Girls, stop. Nothing you say can make me leave Taylor’s side.”

“We’re not asking you to leave her!” Cara protests, loud as ever. “We already brought your food so you can still watch her and eat at the same time.”

Karlie shakes her head. “I told you, I don’t want to eat. We’ve been through this for three days now.”

“Then stop being so goddamn stubborn and fucking eat.”

Both Ella and Cara flinch at Lily’s harsh words and obvious irritation, unused to hearing her curse and utter words with such displeasure but Karlie merely exhales. She knows she’s already six feet under the woman’s skin and a part of her wants to just get this whole thing over with and finally consume something but a bigger part – the guilty, _I’m punishing myself_ part – pushes her to do this as a form of sacrifice. Karlie isn’t the only one who hasn’t eaten anything in three days, anyway.

“Lily –” Karlie begins, apologies dying at the tip of her tongue when Lily’s face shift into that _stop messing around and listen to me very carefully_ expression she always gives the girls when they’re being stubborn and irrational. Like what Karlie is being.

“No. I won’t be hearing any more excuses from you. I know you feel guilty about what happened but you need to stop punishing yourself by not eating. You not sleeping is one thing but starving yourself is another and I won’t have you skin and bones just because you’re guilt is eating you up inside and you feel like you’re drowning in your sorrows.” Karlie frowns at the dramatic words but doesn’t say anything so Lily continues, “I understand what you’re feeling and I know why you feel responsible for what happened but I’ve told you – and _god help me_ if I haven’t stressed this enough – that Taylor won’t blame you for not standing up for her. I’m sure she’s heard stories about The Queen so she knows what she’s capable of doing to us. And trust me when I say that The Queen will notice your weight loss and if you fall down from one strike, she will ask questions and it won’t be _pretty_. You’ve always been a smart girl, Karlie. Do the logical thing.”

Karlie stares down at her fingers interlaced with Taylor’s and feels more guilt pile up inside of her. Everything Lily just said is right. She knows she’s being selfish – she’s ignored her chores and everyone else who’s tried to talk to her for the past few days, all because she’s guilt-ridden and suffering. She even snapped at Cara the other day when the girl offered to look after Taylor because she insisted Karlie needed to rest, too. After all, Taylor wasn’t the only one who was hit but Karlie, with her lack of sleep and peace of mind, yelled at Cara and –

_God, I was awful to them,_ Karlie thinks, shivering and flushing in shame.

Lily offers her the corn soup and Karlie looks at her through her lashes. “Eat.”

So Karlie does. She finally relents and devours the corn soup Cara made and the bread and fruits Ella brought over, using one hand to eat and holding Taylor with the other. The girls dare not comment on how Karlie kept her grip on the unconscious girl and are just content to watch her finally consume something substantial.

“Golden girl finally decided to drop the act, huh?”

A couple of heads turn at the sudden exclamation from the other side of the room.

Karlie gulps a huge amount of water and wipes her mouth with a towel before directing her gaze to Gigi from across the room. “What did you say?”

Gigi puts down the book she was previously reading and glares at Karlie. “You heard me.”

“Actually I didn’t.”

“I said,” Gigi begins, “you finally decided to drop the act. _Huh?_ ”

“ _Act?_ ”

Gigi scoffs and rolls her eyes. “ _Please_. We all know you’re only starving yourself to gain sympathy.”

“If I need sympathy I sure as hell won’t want it to come from you.”

Ella reaches out to touch Karlie’s arm and calm her down a little, sensing the tension between the two, but she shrugs her off, shoulders pulled back, brows knitted in barely suppressed irritation. Karlie’s geared up for a fight and so is Gigi if the look on her face is anything to go by.

“I wasn’t offering you any.”

“Good. I don’t need it, anyway.” Karlie turns her back on the other girl and focuses on re-arranging Taylor’s blanket and thanking Cara and Ella for bringing her food and Lily for snapping her out of her trance of irrationality and guilt.

But Gigi is on a roll and she gets up and stalks over to where Karlie is seated on the floor. “You know, you almost had us all fooled for a second there.”

Karlie takes a deep breath and climbs to her feet, gently retracting her hand from Taylor’s. Lily attempts to stop her, knowing what will happen next, but Karlie shakes her head. Gigi clearly has some bad blood with her and she tends to clear it out here and now. This confrontation – or whatever the hell this is – is long overdue.

“What do you want, Gigi?” Karlie asks in an even tone and she herself is surprised of how calm she said the words considering she’s at the brink of snapping. She’s inclined to think her control over her emotions is because of Taylor’s presence behind her. “I’m not trying to fool anyone.”

“Oh, really?” Gigi puts a hand over her heart, voice dripping with sarcasm. “You weren’t trying to fool us into thinking that you too are the victim when you walked in here carrying an unconscious girl in your arms, had Lily order us to abandon our chores and tend to the girl we barely know, and cried, muttering _I’m sorry_ and _it’s my fault_ over and over again like a broken recorder and punished yourself by refusing to eat because you felt guilty over the fact that you had no control over what happens to us here? That _even you_ can’t help blondie over there?” she barks out a laugh and Karlie grits her teeth. “Because I thought you were The Queen and The Princess’s favourite pet and that oh, I don’t know, _you can protect us when the need arises_?” Gigi steps forward and Karlie has her fists clenched so tight, her knuckles are white. “How well did that go when The Queen whipped Taylor and you had to _watch_?”

Karlie opens her mouth to ask what she has done to be at the receiving end of her anger when Gigi cuts her off. “Not her favourite anymore, huh? It’s a shame. I thought you were our knight in shining armour who will protect us from the evil queen. Turns out _even you_ are not untouchable. Or the girl you’re secretly in love with for years, apparently.”

“That’s enough!” Lily commands, getting to her feet as well, but Gigi just scoffs at her.

“You think you can control me, Lily, by acting all virtuous and motherly? _Please_. The only reason you’re being like this to us is because you have the need to feel like a mother again after losing your child and the right see her.”

All the women in the room gapes at the harsh words. Gigi has always been short-tempered but she has never been like _this_. Sure, she had her moments when she just snaps at anyone but she isn’t someone who is insensitive and downright _ruthless_.

“How dare you –” Ella stands up to march over Gigi but Lily pulls her back, not wanting the girl to intervene and add fuel to the already raging fire. They don’t know what’s gotten to Gigi but she sure knows a lot of things only exchanged between confidantes and best friends.

“What is wrong with _you_?” Karlie demands, throwing all the pretense of being cool and collected. Gigi has crossed a line and she may have done it purposely to provoke her but damn if she’s letting go of that dig to Lily. “For over a year, I did my best to ignore all your snarky comments and opinions about me being the _favourite pet_ , as if being favoured by the people who sexually humiliate and use you is an _honour_. I thought you just needed an outlet for your frustrations about being sold to The Queen by _your own father_ so I kept telling myself that I should put myself in your shoes and be considerate but _this_ ,” Karlie gestures around them, at the women who are watching the exchange from the sidelines, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire, “is just calling attention to yourself and trying to lift yourself up by putting others down and I’m not letting you do that.”

“ _Calling attention to myself_?” Gigi stalks forward until she is a feet away Karlie who stops herself from provoking the girl further by looking down at her. “I’m merely stating facts about you and Lily. It’s not my problem if you can’t handle some dose of truth.”

“You’re not stating facts, you’re accusing us.”

“It’s not an accusation if it’s true.” Gigi smirks at the look on Karlie’s face. “You’ve met Taylor when you were young, saved her like the _knight_ you totally _are,_ fell in love with her when she kissed you and has been dreaming of building a life with her. Isn’t that true?” Laughter spills out of her crimson lips.

Karlie stops herself from looking back at Lily and accusing her of telling Gigi the story of how she first met Taylor, she knows the older woman won’t do that. Gigi is either fetching – which is not plausible because if she is, _how can she be so damn accurate_? – or she’s overheard them. _When and how?_

“You poor thing, thinking there’s a life outside this shit hole.” Gigi looks genuinely sad but her words are anything but sincere. “Well now that she’s here, you can see her every day. Maybe even share her with The Queen _and…_ The Princess.”

_That_ is _it_.

A hand comes slapping across Gigi’s face and Karlie has no time to regret what she’s done and apologize before Gigi’s face burns red with rage and she’s lunging at her.

With the element of surprise on Gigi’s side, she’s able to tackle Karlie to the ground and pin her down despite her height advantage to the raging woman. Karlie’s head hits the floor with a thump and she momentarily feels dizzy before there are nails scratching her face and fingers grabbing at her hair demanding for her attention. Feeling disoriented, Karlie can barely put her arms in front of her to block Gigi’s attack.

How she learned to attack people like this, Karlie will never know, but the one thing she’s sure of is that Gigi is on full blown rage and she can kill her with bare hands if the other women in the room don’t pull her back and calm her down.

 “ _I’m going to fucking kill you, you bitch_!” Gigi screams when Karlie gets a hold of her wrist and tries to stop her.

“Gigi –” Karlie begins but a fist comes down her face and she swears she fleetingly sees stars with the force the girl punched her with.

Then all weight is lifted off of her and there are gentle hands clasping her forearms and touching her face…which is throbbing with pain. _Ugh._

“Karlie? Karlie, can you hear me?”

The voice is familiar but the rushing in her ears and the incessant screaming won’t stop and Karlie has to blink her eyes for a few moments to clear the fog in her vision and focus. _Damn it to hell_.

“Karlie? _Karlie_!”

“I’m fine. I’m fine.” Karlie tries to sit up but a hand stops her and gently pushes her back down to lie on the floor, which is probably a good idea because the room is spinning and there are stars everywhere.

“You hit your head when you fell and she scratched and punched you in the face. You might have a blood clot or something. Stay there. We’ll get you some ice packs.”

Karlie closes her eyes as she hears Cara mutter something about antiseptic and lesbians being dangerous and even though she wants to argue that Gigi is not gay, Karlie feels the lack of sleep the last few days catch up to her big time. Good thing she ate something or she would be knocked out cold already.

“I’m fine. No blood clots, just bruises, I think,” Karlie mutters, touching her jaw and wincing. _Damn_ , Gigi knows how to punch.

“Stay there.”

“It’s not like I can go anywhere with the room spinning and all.”

“Shut up, Kloss.”

She hears some rustling and footsteps retreating and she takes a deep breath, keeping her eyes closed and wondering if standing up and arguing with Gigi was a good idea. In hindsight, probably not, but Karlie thought she’d be able to finally understand why Gigi hates her so much and maybe come up with a solution to make the girl soften and open up to them. Instead, she only made things worse by slapping the other girl.

In Karlie’s defense, Gigi included Taylor in their heated exchange and they both knew it was a low blow just to provoke Karlie but she couldn’t help it. Taylor is bruised and battered on the bed behind her and for Gigi to imply something so _nauseating_ … she bristles at the thought.

Before anger boils inside her chest again, Karlie feels an ice pack being placed gently against her surely bruising jaw and careful hands turning her head slightly to the side.

 “How’d you feel?” It’s Lily.

“Like someone punched me in the face.”

“Yep, Gigi did that,” Cara says from somewhere beside Karlie, putting a pillow under the Karlie’s head.

“She knows how to throw her punches. She’s pretty strong.” Karlie opens her eyes and is greeted with a curtain of brown tresses.

“I don’t know why you’re complimenting her,” Lily murmurs, wiping Karlie’s face with a washcloth, effectively cleaning the smeared blood on her cheeks. “She could have killed you with her bare hands.”

“It’s scary,” Cara adds, holding an ice pack against Karlie’s head where she hit it when Gigi tackled her.

“It’s admirable when a woman knows what she’s doing,” Karlie argues because if she’s being completely honest, Gigi is _strong_ and knows a thing about offensive attacks and that’s something to respect about the woman. When she’s not fuelled with rage, that is.

“Having sex and fighting with a woman are two different things, Kloss.”

“ _Cara_.”

“It’s true, Lily!” Cara protests, accidentally leaning hard on the ice pack in the process and making Karlie grimace and smack her on the arm. Cara apologizes to her with a sheepish smile.

“Where’s Gigi?” Karlie asks eventually after Lily has effectively cleaned her face of nail shaped traces of blood and Cara has put away the ice pack. There’s no blood clot, just a bump on the head and a bruise on the side of her jaw that’ll remind Karlie of their presence by aching once in a while.

“In the kitchen. Martha and the others are calming her down.”

“I should apologize.” She tries to get up again but Lily gently urges her back down.

“Not now, Karlie. She’s still boiling with rage.”

“I’d be too if you left a handprint on my face.”

Karlie flinches at the image of her hand leaving an imprint on Gigi’s cheek and Lily sends Cara a glare.

“But it’s fair, you know,” Cara rushes to add, “She bruised your jaw and scratched you on the face. So you really don’t have to feel guilty.”

“I swear to God, Cara,” Lily grumbles under her breath, putting a hand up to her forehead, exasperated like she’s never been before.

“I’m sorry!” Cara puts her hands up in the air and Karlie just chuckles. Leave it to the younger girl to dig a hole and bury herself in it.

“I just have one question, Karlie,” Cara whispers after ten whole seconds of silence. “Is it… uh…Was Gigi, you know, telling the truth? Uh…about _you and_ uh, _Taylor_?”

Lily opens her mouth to reprimand Cara but Karlie grasps her arm and gives her a small smile, mouthing _it’s okay_. Karlie knows she should’ve told Cara and Ella right after they attended to Taylor the first time but she didn’t trust herself to not break down after seeing the girl who haunted her dreams for years, in front of her, _real at last_ but curled up in a ball, scared and _broken_. She should’ve told them but she was overwhelmed with happiness, shock, anger, _and_ _shame_ for being happy to see the blonde girl she thought she’d never see again.

And now, _everyone_ knows.

Fate has never hated anyone as much as it hated Karlie.

“It’s true.”

Cara’s eyes light up like she’s been given an early Christmas gift but before she can squeal and barrage Karlie with questions, a raspy voice from the bed stills the three women.

_“K-Karlie?”_


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the delay of the upload of this chapter. Life catches up sometimes.  
> Anyway, here it is. This is basically just a filler chapter.

**Chapter Eight**

 

Karlie scrambles up and is down on her knees by Taylor’s bedside in less than three seconds.

“ _Taylor_ ,” Karlie breathes, tears gathering at her eyes. _She’s awake, she’s awake_.

“H-hi,” Taylor croaks, the corners of her mouth tilting up and Karlie almost bursts into tears.

“Hi,” she laugh-cries, shaking her head at how silly she’s acting but she can’t give a damn. Taylor is _finally_ awake. _Thank heavens_.

“I –” Taylor starts but her voice breaks and Karlie feels like a moron.

“Water, you need water, _shit_.” Karlie rushes to get a cup when one is presented to her by Lily who is smiling faintly at her.

Karlie mumbles a ‘thanks’ before helping Taylor sit up and take small sips of the much needed liquid. She lies down again and gets comfortable on the mattress.

“How do you feel?” Karlie asks, forgetting her fight with Gigi and every little thing that will surely make her life more complicated. “Do you need anything? More water? Or do you want to eat? Cara made some corn soup and I’m pretty sure it’s safe because I’m still alive and _oh wait_! Fruits! You need fruits to help you gain back the –”

“Karlie,” Lily says behind her and Karlie stops her worried ramble long enough to see Taylor smiling up at her with her eyes battling sleep and exhaustion.

“ _Shit_.”

“’m okay,” Taylor mumbles quietly, reaching for Karlie’s hand and Karlie interlaces their fingers without a second thought.

“I just wasted a minute talking your ear off. I’m sorry.”

“Missed…y-your…voice.”

Karlie feels heat rise up to her cheeks and she swallows thickly. She convinces herself that Taylor is in a state between sleep and consciousness and she’s just hallucinating. Or sleep talking. Yes, that explains it.

“I thought you’d never wake up,” Karlie whispers, leaning down to place a gentle kiss on the young woman’s forehead. The hell with accidental confessions and obvious actions, she’s sure Taylor won’t remember any of this when she wakes up again, anyway.

“Was…tired…’m f-fine.”

“Shh, go back to sleep now. You need more rest.”

“Want… t-to…see… you.” It’s glaringly obvious how tired Taylor still is and Karlie feels selfish for wanting her to wake up the days prior. Lily was right, she needs a lot of rest.

“You’ll see more of me when you get enough rest.” Karlie grins at how adorable Taylor looks and sounds with her head lolling from side to side and sleepy words slipping past her lips.

“S-scared…”

Karlie clenches the hand not holding Taylor’s but she manages to tamp down her guilt and agony. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. No one will hurt you again, I promise.” It’s tricky and selfish, Karlie knows, but she wanted to see if Taylor will recognize the words from years ago despite her awake-not awake state, because Karlie knows deep within her soul that she won’t be able to go back to being indifferent and neutral towards the blonde like she initially planned and she needs to know if the girl she’s loved ever since will remember her. Even for the shortest moment.

Karlie sees a flicker of recognition and confusion in Taylor’s blue eyes before the girl loses the battle and falls back into unconsciousness. Still, hope blooms in Karlie’s chest and she can’t help but chuckle and cry at the same time. Taylor may be tired and a bit delusional but, it’s there: the recollection of a faraway memory. _She remembers._

“Karls…”

“Yeah?” She wipes at her eyes and turns to look at Lily and Cara whom she forgot that were there altogether when she heard Taylor mumble her name.

“You’re quite obvious with your crush, you know.” Cara wiggles her brows and Karlie laughs.

It’s not a crush but she doesn’t dare try to correct her.

 

* * *

 

 

Karlie sighs for the hundredth time in under twelve hours.

“Your sigh can be heard all the way to the North Pole.”

Normally, Karlie will give Cara the finger but she’s too spent to do that today. She’s exhausted and still anxious and god knows she can sleep for a year or two with no intervals in between whatsoever.

“Taylor _is_ fine, Karls,” Cara reminds her, leaning back against the wall, focused on her new cross-stitch project.

Karlie rubs her face with her hands. “I know, I know. I’m just –”

“Worried, yes, we’ve noticed.”

“Give her a break, Cara,” Ella butts in, sitting down beside Karlie on the floor and offering her a bowl of fruits alongside a bunch of vegan cookies in a tray. Karlie thanks her and begins munching on the food.

“You okay?” Ella asks and Karlie gives a nod, chewing absentmindedly.

“She woke up just to pass out again.” Her brows knit together. “That’s the third time today.”

Taylor occasionally wakes up to drink and eat small portions of food before her body forces her to lay down again and sleep and if not for Lily’s constant reminder that _it’s the natural way of the body to regain its strength_ , Karlie surely would’ve lost her mind. Not that she _isn’t_ but she’s faring better now.

Of course, every time Taylor wakes up, Karlie would be there to attend to her needs, cradling her hand and smiling at her like nothing is wrong in the world. It comforts her to see that Taylor is healing faster than she was a few days prior to Karlie’s decision to take some… _measures_.

Karlie, despite her barely suppressed rage to The Queen, asked the monarch if she could get some medicine from the apothecary to help with Taylor’s condition and after a knowing smirk, a question of _what would I get in return?,_ and a disgusting hour of service, Karlie came back to their room with herbals, ointment, and liquids that will make Taylor heal faster.

And she _is_ healing faster, the bruises dusting Taylor’s body are turning an ugly mix of yellow and green and the gashes are already scabbing. In under a month, she’ll be as flawless as she was when she first came here. If The Queen doesn’t command her presence in the chamber again, that is.

“She’ll be okay,” Ella tries to reassure Karlie but she herself is doubtful. Lily is the only one who firmly believes that Taylor will fully wake up on one of these days.

“It’s been ten days now.”

“ _Jesus._ Stop counting the days, Kloss. That’s what keeps you on edge.” Cara looks up from her work to see Karlie take a deep breath and sigh. _Again_.

“I swear I’ll be the one punching you in the face if you don’t stop sighing, Karlie,” Cara threatens and Ella whips her head to glare and mouth _shut up_ to her. The younger girl puts up her hands in defense.

“Sorry, Cara, I just…”

“Need to rest. This banter gets tiring, y’know.”

“Cara!” Ella hisses, unable to contain herself this time.

“Yes, yes, I will,” Karlie says, putting down her food and pulling the mattress situated under Taylor’s bed. She fluffs up the pillows before plopping down and closing her eyes. “Night, girls.”

Cara and Ella gape at her. Getting Karlie to eat has proven to be a difficult task but convincing her to sleep was like asking a rock to move on its own. Yet, there she is, lying on her side with her breathing even.

_“What the hell just happened?”_

Ella slaps Cara’s arm before picking up the tray of food and dragging her away from the sleeping women.

Unbeknownst to them, Karlie is just pretending to sleep for her sake and her friends’.

So far, Taylor has been lucky that The Queen pays her no attention when she goes in their room to pick a woman (sometimes women) to serve her or The Princess for the night. One might say it’s because Karlie hides the blonde under a mountain of blankets and pillows in the kitchen but Karlie is more inclined to think that The Queen is just letting Taylor recover so she can inflict pain upon her again. They all know The Queen notices everything, especially when it concerns _her_ women.

Karlie doesn’t want to think what will happen once Taylor recovers.

She’s done everything she can to fix the damages: she apologized to Gigi although the other woman was too stubborn and just glared at her, she also said sorry to her sisters for being selfish and neglecting her chores, and she made sure that she has The Princess’ support when Taylor fully pulls through.

_“You think Mother will do that?”_

_Karlie nodded her head, not meeting The Princess’ eyes. “I am, of course, not accusing Your Highness of such things but –”_

_“No, no, no, I truly understand what you mean, Karlie.” The Princess tilted her head up to look her in the eye. “Mother can be too irrational sometimes.”_

_Karlie bit her tongue to keep herself from disagreeing – The Queen isn’t just irrational, she’s insane. But Karlie thought that would only anger the monarchs and she didn’t want that. What she wanted was to simply have The Princess’s word of protection._

_“It is fine, I guess,” The Princess finally said after a few more moments of deliberation and Karlie had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from squealing and pumping her hand in the air. “Okay, I will have Taylor under my protection for a month after she fully recovers. I will ask for her but only to keep her from Mother’s clutches. Is that it, Karlie?”_

_Karlie nodded, smiling. “Yes, Princess, it is all I ask of you.” She moved out of The Princess’ embrace to kneel at the foot of the bed. “What, now, should I do to repay your kindness, Your Majesty?”_

_What transpired after would just get filed down on the things Karlie had to do to survive but this time it wasn’t just for her and her sisters. There is now someone else she had to protect no matter what the cost – or service – and Karlie will do everything she can to ensure that Taylor will not go through what they all went through._

Karlie might’ve thought of sneaking Taylor out of the castle a few times over the week but with Taylor’s condition and the monarchs’ _fondness_ of Karlie, it was proven difficult to even take Taylor out of the room.

Then the idea to ask The Princess popped in her head. Who knew Karlie will be desperate enough to trust The Princess to protect Taylor from The Queen?

But Karlie already made a mistake once. She won’t let the love of her life suffer any more than she already had.

Of course, The Queen can still make The Princess bend to her whims but Karlie knows the heiress inherited her mother’s stubbornness and strong will so that at least assures Karlie that The Princess will take care of Taylor. Karlie has no other choice but to trust that the heiress will keep her word.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the late update! I have been busy for the past few months and I kinda forgot that this one was already finished. For that, this chapter will contain some fluff. I think we all deserve it after all the angst. ;)

**Chapter Nine**

A few more days after Taylor has been treated with herbals from the apothecary, she is already up and energized. The bruises on her body has started to fade to a dull grey, the scabs have fallen away to reveal new skin, and she is smiling like there is nothing wrong in the world.

And Karlie desperately wishes it can stay that way for Taylor and everyone. But she’s learned long ago to not wish for something out of reach and just live in the present.

So Karlie does.

While, Taylor slowly goes back to ‘normal’, the sisters help her settle down in their tiny home in the castle. Lily tasks Taylor to the cooking of lunch every Mondays and the washing of the sheets on Thursdays. Ella also – albeit reluctantly but with Taylor’s persistence – teaches her how to kneel the way The Queen instructed them.

Karlie, on the other hand, just keeps an eye on Taylor at all times.

She’s holding ice when Taylor got her fingers burnt when she took the cookie pan from the oven without mittens. Karlie had a handkerchief ready when Taylor spilled tea on her own clothes. She’s also there when Taylor couldn’t reach a book in the highest shelf.

Taylor thinks Karlie was just being helpful and protective of her after what happened but Cara clearly thinks otherwise.

“You’re creepy,” Cara mutters under her breath as she and Karlie walk around the garden. A privilege they can only savour on Saturday afternoons.

It takes five full seconds for Karlie to look away from the sight of a laughing Taylor. “What?”

“Exhibit A.”

Karlie scrunches her face in confusion. “What do you mean, Cara?”

“You were there when Taylor got her fingers burnt from being careless. Uh no, no. I ain’t done, girl.” Cara holds her hand up before Karlie can utter a word. “You nearly had a panic attack when you didn’t see Taylor on her bed after curfew. You always ensure she doesn’t go out the room _even_ when Lily or Ella is with her. And you keep an eye on her like a hawk. _All day._ ”

Karlie tilts her head to the side. “And?”

_“And?”_ Cara nearly shrieks. “You’re being creepy!”

“I’m being cautious. I just don’t want anything to happen to her.” Karlie looks over at where Taylor sits on the grass with the other women and smiles at the way Taylor easily interacts with them. It’s been three weeks since her recovery and Karlie sees Taylor is slowly healing, not just physically but also emotionally. While Karlie can’t bring back Taylor’s dead loved ones, she can at least ensure she stays happy with her newfound family.

“Karlie.”

Karlie shifts her focus to Cara. “What?”

“Aren’t you afraid Taylor will notice that you’re too protective of her? That you act differently when she’s in a five-mile radius?”

Of course, Karlie’s thought of that. She knows the way she acts around Taylor is too different from the way she interacts with others but she can’t help it. Karlie can’t help but shower Taylor with affection and always be worried of what might happen to her when she’s not around. Karlie has lost so many people she loves she can’t – won’t – lose another.

“I can just say I’m scared because of what happened. You know I still feel guilty about it.”

“How many times should we tell you it’s not your fault?”

Karlie sighs. “I know but sometimes when I think about it, I could’ve done something. Instead I cowered in fear.”

“Taylor wouldn’t have liked that.”

“I wouldn’t have liked what?”

Karlie and Cara jump at the sudden voice from behind.

“Taylor!” Karlie exclaims, one hand on her chest, breathing heavily. “You scared us.”

Taylor flushes pink and Karlie swallows at the sight. “Sorry. I saw you having a conversation here under the canopy of trees so I thought I’d say hi. Then I heard my name.”

“I nearly jumped a foot or two there, T,” Cara laughs, slightly slapping Taylor’s arm. She expects a witty or rude comment from Karlie but all she hears are the chirping of birds and the gust of wind.

_Why Taylor can’t see Karlie’s heart eyes is beyond me,_ Cara thinks, rolling her eyes.

“So,” Taylor begins, smiling sheepishly at them. “What was it that I wouldn’t have liked?”

Karlie rubs the back of her neck, thinking of something to hide the fact that she’s still not over what happened to Taylor. They talked about it and while Karlie apologized for what happened, Taylor simply smiled at her and said, _“It’s okay. I’m just glad you didn’t suffer any more than you already had.”_ Taylor also made Karlie promise to forget about it and just live as they should, even with their bizarre lives.

“We were talking about your, uh, duties,” Cara says, her smile overly bright. “Right, Karlie?”

Karlie nods eagerly, too big of a smile painted on her face as well. “Yep. We thought that you wouldn’t have liked it if you were tasked to clean the closets. They’re full of spiders.”

Karlie can’t be sure if Taylor’s face scrunches in fear or disgust. “Oh, god. Please no. I’m good with kitchen duty.”

“We know!” Cara agrees. “I mean, c’mon, your dishes are _amazing._ Where’d you even learn how to cook like that? Karlie can never compare.”

“Hey!” Karlie slaps Cara’s arm but she sidesteps before Karlie’s palm can touch her. “Taylor’s a cook. And she’s a great cook. I’m more of a baker.”

Taylor laughs at their silliness. “Yeah, Karls is good at baking.”

“Karls?”

“Uh,” Taylor stammers, cheeks flushing with pink and Karlie is really starting to love that colour on her. “I just thought of giving you a nickname.” Taylor chuckles awkwardly.

Cara looks between the both of them and wonders why she didn’t immediately notice the way Karlie’s eyes glaze over whenever she’s talking to or about Taylor. It should’ve been obvious by the way Karlie threw everything away when the guards unceremoniously dumped Taylor in their room that fateful day and the way her voice cracked and her eyes shone with recognition and fear. Yet here she is, witnessing Karlie interact with Taylor in a different situation and with renewed perspective.

“I’m gonna go,” Cara announces, surprising Taylor and Karlie who are in deep conversation already and have forgotten she’s standing next to them _. Lovebirds_ , she thinks. “I forgot Lily told me to pick flowers for The Princess’ room.”

“Want me to help?” Taylor asks.

Cara shakes her head no. “It’s good. You and Karlie go enjoy each other.”

“What?”

“I mean, enjoy the sun together.” Cara is quick to correct after seeing Karlie sending her death glares. “Bye! See you later.” She grins at Taylor and practically sprints away before Karlie can do more than glare at her.

Karlie watches Cara skip across the lawn and sighs internally. That girl is more obvious than the corruption in the castle.

“Everyone seems happy. It’s a nice view.”

Karlie looks at Taylor and sees her scanning the garden.

The women are given Saturday afternoons to sleep under the sun, stitch clothes beside guard dogs, pick flowers from the bushes, chat with other women, and just laze around doing nothing. It’s the one thing The Queen has given them with no price to pay.

A gift. A privilege. A piece of freedom.

A piece of freedom meaning being surrounded by a 20-feet tall wall and armoured guards with whips.

Beggars can’t be choosers and the women will get whatever they can.

“It’s once a week so we enjoy it while it lasts,” Karlie responds after a while of just watching her sisters. “They all deserve a break. _We_ deserve this, at least.”

“Did you ask for this?” Taylor asks, hesitance obvious in her blue eyes.

Karlie’s response is quick. “No, no, no. The Queen gave this to us as a ‘reward.’ It’s a safe time/zone as we like to call it.”

“Safe time/zone?”

“Yeah. The Queen doesn’t go here so we have five hours of peace and safety from her in this place.”

Taylor’s eyes darken and Karlie regrets having said anything. Taylor’s hatred for The Queen has only gotten worse and Karlie is worried she might do something rash that even Karlie – or The Princess, for that matter – may not save her from.

 “Penny for your thoughts?” Karlie asks when the silence becomes too much.

“Five hours a week isn’t enough.” Taylor practically spits out the words.

“Hey, relax,” Karlie says, laying a tentative hand on Taylor’s arm. Taylor looks at her hand but doesn’t pull away. “Five hours is better than nothing. It is something.”

Karlie holds Taylor’s gaze for a long moment before Taylor speaks quietly, “I don’t think I can get used to this. I shouldn’t be here. I lost my family, Karlie. They died in front of me. My siblings and my parents, bloodied and tortured. And I did nothing but watch and cry and beg for their lives. I was supposed to be with them, beaten up, _dead._ I don’t deserve to live. Or maybe this is already a punishment for surviving. Living in a barricaded castle where one mistake costs you hours of whipping and humiliation.” Taylor wants to stop but the dam that’s holding her emotions has already been broken. “Maybe I deserve this because I did nothing and I -”

“Stop.”

Taylor sucks in a breath at the steely resolution in Karlie’s voice. The only time she’s heard that was when Karlie ordered the girls to help her when she was hastily dumped in the slaves’ room.

“Don’t say that,” Karlie says, voice barely above whisper. Her eyes are downcast and Taylor feels guilt sit heavy in her gut.

“You’re here for a reason, Taylor. And maybe the universe has a fucked up way of arranging things for us but you’re here, _alive_.” Karlie meets Taylor’s eyes and Taylor barely suppresses a gasp at how green and emotional Karlie’s eyes look. “You’re with me. With us.” Karlie gestures at the women scattered around the garden. “The pain of losing your family will never go away but you learn how to cope and deal with it. It will hurt from time to time but you have to remember you’re not alone. We’re here for you. We have each other’s backs. I’ve got you and I’m not going anywhere.” Karlie takes Taylor’s hands in hers. “I promise.”

Tears start escaping Taylor’s eyes and Karlie envelopes her in her arms. “You have me, Taylor,” Karlie whispers against her hair and Taylor only sobs harder, all the pain and loss she’s kept bottled up inside of her pouring out. She’s had no time to properly mourn her family after everything that’s happened the past few weeks and now here she is, crying her heart out in the middle of the day in a garden.

Karlie continues cooing soft words in Taylor’s ears until her sobs eventually die down and Taylor pulls away and wipes her face with her sleeve. She notices the wet stain she left on Karlie’s dress. “I’m sorry, your dress got wet, I’ll handle it and –”

“Shh, it’s okay. It won’t stain.” Karlie smiles softly and Taylor tries hard not to notice how lovely she is with that smile gracing her lips.

Karlie wipes away a tear on Taylor’s cheek before saying, “I have something to show you.” She takes Taylor’s hand before practically dragging her to a tree near the wall.

Taylor gasps as she sees what’s under the tree.

Blocks of wood with her family’s names engraved on it are planted on the ground, surrounded by lilies and lit candles. There are pieces of paper with rocks atop them to keep the wind from blowing them away and Taylor slowly picks one and sees a neat scrawl.

_No words can express the feeling of losing your family but we are here for you. You’re part of the family now. We love you, Taylor. – Lily_

Tears once more escape her eyes as she folds the paper and picks up another one.

_We may have not known each other long but I already see you as my sister. I’m sorry for your loss. Just remember my overly beautiful face is here for you. – Cara_

Taylor laughs and behind her, Karlie smiles and makes a move to give Taylor some semblance of privacy.

A hand grips Karlie’s wrist and she turns around to see Taylor, eyes red from crying but with a hint of a smile on her lips. “Stay.”

And how can Karlie resist such a request? She nods and they sit side by side in front of the makeshift memorial.

“Thank you,” Taylor mutters after a while of crying and reading the messages the women have written for her. “I know you organized this.”

“I wasn’t the only one. Lily helped. Ella, too. Cara tried but you know how she is. She just broke the wood.”

Taylor laughs and Karlie marvels how a simple sound can give her so much butterflies in her stomach. “I can only imagine what Cara did to break a wood.”

“You need this, Taylor,” Karlie mutters. “We know you have to mourn their deaths and this is the closest thing we can come up with.”

Taylor nods, grateful beyond words. The past few weeks have been a blur and this is the only time that she has to herself. The only time she can pray for the souls of her family.

Karlie starts a prayer and they eventually lapse into silence afterwards, the voices of their sisters a dull sound in the background.

 “I wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for you,” Taylor declares, softly. The privacy and the atmosphere of the moment emboldening her. “And I don’t just mean the time the guards dumped me in our room like a sack of potatoes because you also saved me when we were still kids.”

The flower in Karlie’s hands drops as her whole body freezes. “W-what?”

“I know it was you. You saved me from those princes but I never got to thank you or ask for your name before you were called away. But I remember your eyes. How could I forget when they haunted my dreams for years?” Taylor looks wistful as she gazes at the flowers in front of them. “At first I thought it was just a hallucination. I felt like I was at the brink of death when I saw your eyes again and thought maybe you were, in fact, an angel coming for me. And whenever I looked at them, I convinced myself that green eyes are just common and they’re not from the lanky girl who promised me no one was going to hurt me ever again. I had no time to contemplate if it was really you or not but after you said those words again… I knew… I just knew it was you, Karlie. You’ve always been my savior.”

Karlie just stares at Taylor, stunned. She’s not hiding the fact that they’ve met before but hearing Taylor say those words feels surreal. _She remembers._

Taylor leans in to whisper “Thank you,” to Karlie’s ear before kissing her on the cheek.

Karlie’s brain almost stops functioning.

“I…You’re welcome,” Karlie responds later, after recovering from the shock of Taylor’s confession. “I thought you forgot about it.”

Taylor shakes her head. “Never. You’re my princess charming, y’know,” she teases.

“I’m nowhere near being a princess,” Karlie objects.

“You can pass off as one though.”

“What? No, _you’re_ the princess.”

Taylor looks mortified at the mere mention of it. “No way. I look like a peasant compared to you.”

“You should go take a look at a mirror and see what I see.”

“And what do you see, Karlie?”

_Walked right into that one, Kloss._

Karlie tries to splutter a response and Taylor laughs out loud. “I was kidding, Karlie.”

“But really, though,” Karlie starts after mentally regaining her dignity. “I see a strong and independent woman when I look at you, Taylor. I am amazed by how stubborn you are at the worst of times.”

Taylor giggles and really, how can a laugh make Karlie fall deeper?

“You give me too much credit.”

“It’s what you deserve.”

That makes Taylor blush and look away.

Before Karlie can apologize for going too far and being too confessional, Taylor whispers, “I’m so glad I have you with me.”

Maybe it’s the way Taylor’s eyes shine or the slight tilt of her head to the side, but Karlie knows she is helpless and beyond saving when she vows, “Always.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!
> 
> Please leave comments or feedbacks if you enjoyed the story - or not. It'll be really appreciated. 
> 
> Have a fun day lovelies!  
> I'm @swiftiekloss on Twitter, hit me up. :)


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